SpaceX’s Lunar Lander Might Miss NASA’s 2027 Mission

Metaverse Planet

September 23, 2025

SpaceX’s Starship HLS lunar lander may not be ready in time for the Artemis 3 mission in 2027. Difficulties with in-orbit cryogenic fuel transfer and changes to the engine design are putting the schedule at risk.

The Starship Human Landing System (HLS), being developed by SpaceX for the Artemis program, is facing significant risk for the crewed lunar mission planned for 2027. According to NASA safety analyst Paul Hill, who recently visited SpaceX‘s Starbase facility in Texas, the lander’s schedule is extremely tight, and the mission could be delayed for years.

The main issue is fuel transfer.

The primary cause of the delay is technical challenges with in-orbit cryogenic fuel transfer. The HLS must be refueled in Earth orbit to land on the lunar surface. However, SpaceX has not yet developed the technology to make this system a reality.

In a microgravity environment, the inability to separate liquid and gas within the tanks makes proper fuel transfer difficult. Additionally, cryogenic fuels like liquid oxygen and liquid methane, which must be stored at very low temperatures, begin to boil and evaporate with the slightest heat input, leading to both losses and safety risks. Issues such as ensuring leak-proof tank connections, “settling” the fuel to the correct area before transfer, and insulating the large Starship tanks are also slowing the process. Furthermore, ongoing design changes to the Raptor engines are also contributing to the delays.

The U.S. and NASA are not conducting the Artemis mission entirely under government control; private space companies are involved in many aspects. Therefore, a delay in a critical component like the one from SpaceX could result in China landing on the moon before the U.S. with its own crewed lander, Lanyue, by 2030.

In 2023, the company announced it would attempt an in-orbit refueling test by early 2025, but this has not yet happened. Elon Musk recently stated that they would “demonstrate fuel reusability next year.”

Despite these challenges, Artemis 2, the second phase of the Artemis program, is moving forward with a launch scheduled for early 2026. This flight will carry four astronauts around the Moon but will not land on the surface. The crewed landing mission, Artemis 3, is still targeted for 2027. The last crewed U.S. landing on the Moon occurred in 1972.

The main issue is fuel transfer.

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