Is Artemis 3 Too Risky? Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel Warns NASA of Major Safety Hazards Ahead

An Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP), tasked with overseeing and scrutinising human and space related projects, has raised questions regarding NASA lunar projects. The mission in question is Artemis 3 – the first crewed flight to the south pole of the Moon. 

The eyebrows have been raised over safety concerns and whether NASA is undertaking too much in the project scoping. Now calls are reverberating from ASAP for NASA to reconsider their mission objectives.

Bill Bray, one of ASAP’s panelists, said: “Each first milestone carries its own individual risk…It really begs the question: Is it time for the agency to reassess the current mission objectives and its approach for Artemis 3 and beyond, with the goal to better balance the risks across all those flight tests?”

What Has ASAP Recognised As Safety Issues For Artemis 3?

The meeting which took place on 30 January 2025, echoed past issues raised by ASAP in their 2023/24 Annual Report. Those issues surrounded NASA’s “aggressive launch schedule”, new space suit, and series of novel objectives. ASAP also mentioned there is a significant risk associated with the Orion Spacecraft which is poised to transport the NASA astronauts to space. 

Reason being, the journey to the Lunar south pole will see the rocket’s endurance tested as it will equate to the longest flight time Orion has undertaken. Additionally, Orion’s heat shield has also been placed on the risk register due to the ”char loss” experienced during Artemis 1. NASA is now working to bolster the heat shield by applying an Avcoat. Yet, ASAP remains concerned and have reaffirmed the risk during their latest meeting.

As a result of their long list of identified risks, and the fact ASAP has been forced to reiterate them during their recent meeting, signals Artemis 3 will be an extremely complex and intricate mission. Equally, NASA will need to address these issues during mission development. Particularly, the risks that could impact the safety of their astronauts onboard.   

The Range of “Firsts” Concerning NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel

Some of the novel aspects of the mission objectives for Artemis 3 will need to be demonstrated prior to launch. Detailed in a long list of “firsts” collated by ASAP in their 2023/24 report, NASA will attempt to achieve the following during Artemis 3:

• First mission dependent on the Human Landing System (HLS) — requiring approximately 15 fueling launches to support Artemis III
• First launch of the new Orion variant 
• First use of HLS LEO Depot station — including cryo refueling 
• First HLS Launch from Cape Canaveral on a new launch pad 
• First HLS Lander/Orion rendezvous and docking in lunar orbit
• First HLS uncrewed lunar landing
• First HLS uncrewed demonstration of a successful lunar ascent 
• First HLS crewed landing on the Moon
• First Lunar Extravehicular Activity (EVA) since 1972 
• First use of new EVA suits
• First HLS crewed ascent from lunar surface to lunar orbit 
• First use of Lunar surface communication and broadly integrated communications system
• First landing at the challenging South Pole site”

NASA has scheduled a 2027 launch, but hopes are slowly dissipating due to the amount of work remaining. Especially all the elements of the mission that have never been demonstrated or attempted. It is unclear which aspect of ASAP’s list NASA will tackle first, but one thing is for sure: there is a lot of work to be completed before Artemis 3 can launch.