Nasa announces change to its Moon landing plans

Nasa is adding an extra mission to its Artemis programme before it attempts to land astronauts on the Moon for the first time in half a century.

The original plan was to fly around the Moon for the Artemis II mission, which is currently scheduled for April, and then attempt a lunar landing with Artemis III in 2028.

Now Artemis III will stay closer to home - a crew will head to low-Earth orbit in 2027 to practice docking with a lunar lander.

Nasa said this additional flight would not slow down its return to the Moon - it is still aiming for 2028 for one or even two lunar landings in what will be Artemis IV and V.

Nasa administrator Jared Isaacman told a media briefing that he was adding an extra step to the Artemis programme because he did not want such long gaps between launches.

He added that the extra flight to low-Earth orbit would help to test the technology before a Moon landing.

The US space agency also provided an update on the Artemis II mission, which will see four astronauts fly around the far side of the Moon and back to Earth.

Nasa was targeting March for the launch, but its plans were delayed after a helium leak was discovered on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

The rocket has now been taken from the launchpad to the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida where it will be repaired.

The earliest launch opportunity is now in April - but Nasa said the exact date would depend on how long the technical work would take.

The new plans are a significant change to Artemis programme.

Isaacman said the current architecture was "not a pathway to success."

"You don't go from one uncrewed launch of SLS [Artemis I], wait three years, go around the Moon [Artemis II], wait three years and land on it."

He said sending the Orion capsule - which is the spacecraft that the astronauts will travel to the Moon in - and a lunar lander into low-Earth orbit first would reduce risks.

"I would certainly much rather have the astronauts testing out the integrated systems of the lander and Orion in low-Earth orbit than on the Moon," he said.

"It's also an opportunity for us, maybe, to get our suits up there before the astronauts actually have to wear them on the surface of the Moon ... this is all going to help take down risk for a subsequent landing."

However Nasa's lunar plans have a major missing part - the lander that will take astronauts to the Moon's surface has not yet been selected.

Elon Musk's SpaceX company has a contract to build the lander - which will be flown to the Moon on a SpaceX Starship rocket. But delays to the Starship rocket have led Nasa to ask SpaceX for a new streamlined plan to speed a return to the Moon.

Nasa has also asked rival company Blue Origin - which is owned by Jeff Bezos - to come up with an accelerated plan for a lunar lander.

Isaacman said the Artemis III docking in low Earth orbit could take place with one or both of the landers.

The US is under pressure to return to the Moon. China is aiming for a lunar landing by 2030, and has been making steady progress towards this.

Both nations are planning to land at the Moon's south pole - and are competing for the best spots to build their lunar bases.