NASA announced,Two scientific instruments have been selected for deployment by astronauts in the lunar south pole region during the Artemis IV mission.These two instruments are:Dust and Plasma Environmental Detectors(Codename: DUSTER): Focus on studying lunar dust problems. Previous lunar exploration activities have shown that lunar dust is extremely adhesive and abrasive, which is one of the main challenges faced by long-term lunar surface activities. DUSTER consists of a set of instruments installed on a small autonomous rover. It will be used to measure the lunar dust and plasma environment around the landing site and evaluate its impact on astronaut activities and the lander's takeoff and landing process.
Lunar South Pole Seismic Observatory(Codename: SPSS): It aims to detect the internal structure of the moon, record the frequency of meteorite impacts on the moon, and monitor the seismic environment of the lunar surface in real time to assess the risks that astronauts face when operating on the lunar surface.
Artemis 4 is scheduled for September 2028. This mission is the second manned lunar landing plan. Four astronauts will station in the "Gateway" lunar orbiting space station and carry out a lunar surface landing in due course.
Review of the progress of the Artemis program:
Artemis I: Successfully executed in 2022, it sent an unmanned Orion spacecraft into lunar orbit and set a new record for the distance traveled by a manned spacecraft.
Artemis II: Currently in preparation. NASA plans to execute the mission before February 5, 2026 (no later than April). At that time, four astronauts will fly to the lunar orbit aboard the Orion spacecraft and return to Earth after a flight of about ten days.
Artemis III: Planned to be implemented in mid-2027, it will send astronauts to the south pole surface of the moon, conduct scientific research for about a week, and then return.