NASA has chosen four astronauts for the Artemis III mission, but there has been a major setback: the destruction of a Blue Origin rocket and its only launchpad. Our science reporter Katrina Miller describes what this event might mean for the U.S. goal of landing on the moon by 2028.

NASA’s missions these days rarely feature all-male crews. Jared Isaacman, its administrator, said women play prominent roles throughout the space agency.

Elon Musk said he had initially given SpaceX less than a 10 percent chance of succeeding. His rocket company has come a long way.

NASA’s next mission in its effort to return humans to the moon will be led by an all-male crew. Three of them have extensive experience in space, while the other was a backup on Artemis II.

Almost forgotten now, the mission circled the Earth for 10 days, performing a series of tests with the lunar lander. What it lacked in glory it made up for in technological contributions.

NASA’s Artemis program has little room for error if it is to land astronauts on the moon by the end of 2028, but Blue Origin could be out of commission for at least a year.

Russian astronauts prepared to make repairs on Friday morning, but after an hour and a half, officials decided no urgent action was needed.

The rocket, built by the Jeff Bezos-owned space company, was to carry 48 satellites into space. Blue Origin reported on social media that “all personnel have been accounted for.”

The contracts, announced on Tuesday, are part of the space agency’s efforts to establish a moon base.