MissionsNET

Lunar landing slips to no earlier than June 28

Mission managers traded four days of schedule for a cleaner approach corridor over the south pole.

Author: By Chris Santangelo
Published: June 22, 2026
Event date: June 27, 2026
Last verified: June 22, 2026

The limb of the Moon with a thin band of lunar terrain catching low sunlight — Low-angle sunlight rakes across the lunar south-polar terrain ahead of the upcoming landing attempt. — Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University (Public domain — credit required)

The Signal · 01

Lunar landing slips to no earlier than June 28

NET

Mission managers traded four days of schedule for a cleaner approach corridor over the south pole.

The landing attempt that had been targeting June 24 is now no earlier than June 28 after navigation teams flagged tighter-than-expected lighting at the candidate site. The delay buys time to re-run the descent simulation against updated terrain models.

This is the kind of slip that reads as bad news but usually is not. South-polar landings are unforgiving: shadows are long, slopes are steep, and the margin between a textbook touchdown and a tipped lander is measured in degrees.

Primary source: NASA Artemis mission update

Also: SpaceNews report

Primary sources: NASA Artemis mission update

Supporting: SpaceNews report

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Lunar landing slips to no earlier than June 28

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