NASA updated the Artemis III landing geography in October 2024, narrowing the original 13 candidate South Pole regions to 9: Peak near Cabeus B, Haworth, Malapert Massif, Mons Mouton Plateau, Mons Mouton, Nobile Rim 1, Nobile Rim 2, de Gerlache Rim 2, and Slater Plain. The update was presented in the context of an April 2026 publication on site selection trade studies, which shows the agency is still optimizing crewed landing choices across these zones.
The technical implication is that landing-zone selection is converging around terrain that balances illumination, communication, and access to polar resources, especially regions near permanently shadowed areas where water ice is expected. For lunar habitation, that means the decisive constraints are not just geology but power continuity, direct-to-Earth visibility, traverse safety, and proximity to volatile-rich cold traps that can support propellant, life support, and contingency water supply.
The Ark team should track which of the 9 regions survive into final crewed mission planning, then map them against stable sunlight fractions, Earth visibility windows, slope limits, and PSR proximity. Priority research should include polar landing-pad siting, dust mitigation, thermal survivability, communications geometry, and resource extraction pathways tied to the most repeatedly selected zones, because those variables will determine where a durable lunar settlement can actually operate.