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Health & Science5h 25m ago
On June 9, 2026, NASA named Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot of Artemis 3, making him the first European ever assigned to an Artemis crew.
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Houston, Johnson Space Center
Who
Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, NASA, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher, ESA exploration chief Daniel Neuenschwander
What
On June 9, 2026, NASA named Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot of Artemis 3, making him the first European ever assigned to an Artemis crew.
When
Mon, 15 Jun 2026 07:43:24 GMT · 5h 25m ago
Where
Houston, Johnson Space Center ·
Why
Parmitano's assignment is part of a wider negotiation by ESA to get a European astronaut onto the lunar surface, leveraging Europe's contributions to the Orion spacecraft and new surface-oriented offers.
The Frontline Impact
How this affects you
This marks a significant step in international space collaboration, potentially increasing Europe's role in lunar exploration through future missions and strategic negotiations for landing a European astronaut on the Moon. The decision comes after NASA paused the Lunar Gateway program, shifting priorities and creating new negotiation opportunities for ESA.
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2 events in this thread- Currently Reading5h 25m agoOn June 9, 2026, NASA named Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot of Artemis 3, making him the first European ever assigned to an Artemis crew.
- Health & Science5h 25m agoNASA named Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano as the pilot for the Artemis 3 mission, making him the first European Space Agency astronaut assigned to an Artemis crew.Open article