Lunar Module
Apollo-era crewed lander; no modern equivalent yet exists for Artemis.
Last refreshed: 6 April 2026
Why does the Apollo lander matter when no one has replaced it yet?
Latest on Lunar Module
- What was the Lunar Module used for in the Apollo programme?
- The Lunar Module carried two Apollo astronauts from orbit to the Moon's surface and back. Six successful landings used it between 1969 and 1972.Source: training
- Why is Apollo 16's Lunar Module called Orion?
- NASA named it Orion, the same name later given to the Artemis crew capsule. Charlie Duke, who flew on Apollo 16, sent an Easter message to the Artemis II crew noting the coincidence.Source: apollo-16-astronaut-sends-easter-message-to-crew
- Does Artemis have a Lunar Module for landing?
- Not yet. SpaceX Starship HLS is the planned lander but is over two years behind schedule. Artemis II is a flyby only; no crew landing is imminent.Source: training
- When did humans last land on the Moon?
- Apollo 17 in December 1972 was the last crewed lunar landing. Artemis II is the first human spacecraft to re-enter lunar gravity since then.Source: orion-enters-lunar-gravity-for-first-time-since-1972
Background
The Lunar Module (LM) was the purpose-built crewed lander used in NASA's Apollo programme from 1969 to 1972 to carry two astronauts from lunar orbit to the Moon's surface and back. Built by Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, it was a two-stage vehicle: a descent stage for landing and an ascent stage for returning the crew to the Command/Service Module in orbit. A total of twelve humans descended to the lunar surface in six successful LM landings. Apollo 16's lander was named Orion (the same name now carried by the Artemis crew capsule) and its commander Charlie Duke placed a family photograph on the lunar surface in April 1972, still there beneath the Artemis II flyby path.
The LM had no equivalent during the gap between Apollo 17 in December 1972 and today. NASA's Artemis architecture designates SpaceX Starship HLS (Human Landing System) as the successor crewed lander, but Starship's first uncrewed lunar landing is now more than two years behind its original schedule. The absence of a ready lander means Artemis II, the mission currently approaching the Moon, is a cislunar flyby only, retracing a path last flown by Apollo 8 in 1968 rather than landing.
The LM's design legacy carries enduring lessons: its ascent engine used hypergolic propellants that ignited on contact, removing the risk of ignition failure at the most critical moment. No modern lander design has yet demonstrated equivalent reliability at lunar scale in a crewed configuration, which is why the Artemis crew rescue debate centres on what happens if the Starship HLS cannot lift off from the surface.