NASA has announced a major restructuring of the Artemis program, reshaping the roadmap for returning humans to the Moon.

At a February 27 press conference, agency leadership addressed the rollback of Artemis II following post–wet–dress–rehearsal testing and unveiled significant changes to upcoming missions, including shifting Artemis III from a planned lunar landing to a low-Earth-orbit rendezvous and integrated systems test. In this episode, you’ll hear remarks from NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and Lori Glaze, Moon to Mars program manager and acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate. They explain what happened with Artemis II and why NASA is changing course.

Then, host Sarah Al-Ahmed is joined by Jack Kiraly, director of government relations at The Planetary Society, and Ari Koeppel, AAAS science and technology policy fellow, to unpack the political and strategic forces behind this shift and what it means for the future of lunar exploration.

In What’s Up, Bruce Betts, our chief scientist, looks back at Apollo 9, the Earth-orbiting mission that proved the Lunar Module could operate independently before NASA attempted a lunar landing.

Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2026-artemis-update

NASA has announced a major restructuring of the Artemis program, reshaping the roadmap for returning humans to the Moon.
At a February 27 press conference, agency leadership addressed the rollback of Artemis II following post&ndash;wet&ndash;dress&ndash;rehearsal testing and unveiled significant changes to upcoming missions, including shifting Artemis III from a planned lunar landing to a low-Earth-orbit rendezvous and integrated systems test. In this episode, you&rsquo;ll hear remarks from NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and Lori Glaze, Moon to Mars program manager and acting associate administrator for NASA&rsquo;s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate. They explain what happened with Artemis II and why NASA is changing course.
Then, host Sarah Al-Ahmed is joined by Jack Kiraly, director of government relations at The Planetary Society, and Ari Koeppel, AAAS science and technology policy fellow, to unpack the political and strategic forces behind this shift and what it means for the future of lunar exploration.
In What&rsquo;s Up, Bruce Betts, our chief scientist, looks back at Apollo 9, the Earth-orbiting mission that proved the Lunar Module could operate independently before NASA attempted a lunar landing.
Discover more at: <a href="https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2026-artemis-update">https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2026-artemis-update</a>

Planetary Radio brings you the human adventure across our Solar System and beyond. We visit each week with the scientists, engineers, leaders, advocates, and astronauts who are taking us across the final frontier. Regular features raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face. Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Planetary Society colleagues including Bill Nye the Science Guy and Bruce Betts as they dive deep into space science and exploration. The monthly Space Policy Edition takes you inside the DC beltway where the future of the US space program hangs in the balance. Visit planetary.org/radio for an episode guide and much more.

Planetary Radio brings you the human adventure across our Solar System and beyond. We visit each week with the scientists, engineers, leaders, advocates, and astronauts who are taking us across the final frontier. Regular features raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face. Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Planetary Society colleagues including Bill Nye the Science Guy and Bruce Betts as they dive deep into space science and exploration. The monthly Space Policy Edition takes you inside the DC beltway where the future of the US space program hangs in the balance. Visit planetary.org/radio for an episode guide and much more.

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science

Planetary Radio brings you the human adventure across our solar system and beyond. We visit each week with the scientists, engineers, leaders, advocates, and astronauts taking us across the final frontier. Regular features raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face. Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Planetary Society colleagues including Bill Nye, the Science Guy, and Bruce Betts, chief scientist for The Planetary Society, as they dive deep into the latest space news. The monthly Space Policy Edition takes you inside the DC beltway with Casey Dreier and Jack Kiraly to discuss the politics of space exploration in the US and advocacy actions you can take to support the missions that matter. Visit planetary.org/radio for the space trivia contest, an episode guide, and much more.

Planetary Radio brings you the human adventure across our solar system and beyond. We visit each week with the scientists, engineers, leaders, advocates, and astronauts taking us across the final frontier. Regular features raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face. Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Planetary Society colleagues including Bill Nye, the Science Guy, and Bruce Betts, chief scientist for The Planetary Society, as they dive deep into the latest space news. The monthly Space Policy Edition takes you inside the DC beltway with Casey Dreier and Jack Kiraly to discuss the politics of space exploration in the US and advocacy actions you can take to support the missions that matter. Visit planetary.org/radio for the space trivia contest, an episode guide, and much more.

NASA has restructured the Artemis program, shifting Artemis III from a planned lunar landing to a low-Earth-orbit systems test following the rollback of Artemis II. We hear remarks from NASA leadership and break down what the changes mean with Planetary Society space policy experts.