- Hydrogen leaks detected in a fueling rehearsal delayed a historic NASA mission.
- Artemis II is slated to carry four astronauts to the moon and beyond.
- The mission is first crewed lunar flight since last the Apollo mission over 50 years ago.
A NASA mission set to return astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years later this week is on hold until March following detection of hydrogen leaks during a fueling procedure rehearsal Tuesday.
NASA said engineers spent several hours troubleshooting a liquid hydrogen leak in a fueling interface but ultimately were able to fill the tanks of the massive SLS rocket ship. But later, with just five minutes left on a practice countdown early Tuesday morning, the effort was shut down when monitoring equipment detected a spike in the liquid oxygen leak rate.
Hydrogen leak issues also contributed to delaying the Artemis I mission which eventually completed a successful unmanned flight in 2022.
The next attempt to launch the Artemis II mission, slated to carry four astronauts on a nearly 260,000-mile journey to the moon and beyond, is postponed until March 6 at the earliest when the next launch window opens.
In a social media post, newly appointed NASA administrator Jared Isaacman noted the point of the so-called wet dress rehearsal to practice the fueling procedure is intended to identify any potential issues ahead of launch.
“With more than three years between SLS launches, we fully anticipated encountering challenges,” Isaacman wrote in a posting to X. “That is precisely why we conduct a wet dress rehearsal. These tests are designed to surface issues before flight and set up launch day with the highest probability of success.”
Four astronauts, commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, are lined up to fly the 10-day Artemis II mission, launching from Kennedy Space Center aboard the Orion capsule powered by the SLS rocket system. The crew’s flight will take them on a path arcing about 5,000 miles past the moon before returning to Earth for a planned splashdown landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego. If successful, the mission will take the crew further into space than any other manned flight in history.
Next month’s planned launch follows 2022’s Artemis I mission, a $4.1 billion effort which saw a successful 25-day unmanned flight that tested out the SLS rocket/Orion capsule package. That mission took the Orion spacecraft, carrying three dummies outfitted in spacesuits and monitoring gear, within 81 miles of the lunar surface before eventually traveling some 40,000 miles past the moon before returning to Earth.
If the Artemis II mission goes to plan, NASA intends to launch the SLS/Orion package on a mission in 2028 that will include a landing on the moon’s surface.
SLS fun facts and a Utah connection
NASA says its SLS launch system stands at 322 feet high — taller than the Statue of Liberty — and weighs 5.75 million pounds when loaded with fuel.
During launch and ascent, the SLS produces 8.8 million pounds of maximum thrust, 15% more thrust than the Saturn V rockets that propelled Apollo astronauts to the moon.
Utah-based aerospace companies and experts have long played a role in NASA space missions, and the Artemis program is no exception. The massive solid fuel booster rockets that provide some 75% of the SLS initial thrust were developed and tested in Utah by Northrop Grumman in partnership with NASA.