# @europeanspaceagency on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DZX0B1mDH1w
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/66426209-europeanspaceagency-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/0cd9cdb961.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-06-09T16:36:43.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** J.L.Lopez (@xandler80) — https://gondola.cc/xandler80

## Caption

Meet the four astronauts who’ll push Orion to its limits 👨‍🚀👨‍🚀👨‍🚀👨‍🚀

NASA has just announced the Artemis III crew: Commander @astrokomrade. Lander specialists @astro_frankrubio and @astro_andred. And as pilot, our very own @astro_luca. This is a crew that’s ready for one of the most ambitious test flights in human spaceflight history.

Now, let’s talk about Luca: 366 days in space. Six spacewalks. Commander of the @iss. More than 2000 hours in the air, across 40+ types of aircraft. He’s not just an astronaut. He’s an experimental test pilot, the kind of person built for exactly this.

Artemis III is all about pushing the absolute limits of what a crewed spacecraft can do in orbit. Rendezvous, docking, complex manoeuvres. The procedures that future crews will depend on to actually reach the lunar surface. And Luca will also be at the controls of this mission.

He won’t be flying alone in more ways than one, though. European industry is on board too, literally, in the form of our European Service Module. The powerhouse of the Orion spacecraft. It delivers the power, propulsion, water and air that keep all four astronauts alive. Built across 13 of our Member States, with over 100 suppliers involved, it’s already proven itself on Artemis I and II. Now it goes further.

This is what our cooperation with NASA looks like in practice. A European astronaut at the controls, a European module powering the spacecraft. Together, we’re building the future of human spaceflight.

Swipe through the carousel to see the crew in their Artemis spacesuits and hear how Luca felt when he got the call.

📸 @nasa

## Stats

- **Views:** 71,805
- **Likes:** 43,923
- **Shares:** 0
- **Comments:** 981

## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ESA - European Space Agency | @europeanspaceagency | https://gondola.cc/europeanspaceagency | Government Organization |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Producer |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Content Producer |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Editor |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Social Media Manager |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Senior Social Media Manager |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Video Editor |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Publisher |
| Luca Parmitano | @astro_luca | https://gondola.cc/astro_luca | Creator |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Community Manager |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Copywriter |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Social Media Coordinator |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Subtitler |
| J.L.Lopez | @xandler80 | https://gondola.cc/xandler80 | Social Media Strategist |

## Tags

europeanspaceagency, artemis iii

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