NASA delays the launch of Artemis I again due to a fuel leak

Artemis I , the unmanned mission that makes up the first phase of the NASA program  that aims to return humanity to the Moon , has been delayed again; despite having already been rescheduled on August 29. A leak of liquid hydrogen in the tank of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is the reason for this change of plans.

According to what the space agency detailed, the takeoff experienced new complications due to a leak in the tank of the Space Launch System (SLS) , the rocket that will take the Orion capsule to the orbit of our natural satellite. Initially, this only caused a slight delay in the launch window, but NASA ended up canceling the launch because they could not find a solution to this problem.

The #Artemis I mission to the Moon has been postponed. Teams attempted to fix an issue related to a leak in the hardware transferring fuel into the rocket, but were unsuccessful. Join NASA leaders later today for a news conference. Check for updates: https://t.co/6LVDrA1toy pic.twitter.com/LgXnjCy40u

— NASA (@NASA) September 3, 2022

New problems for Artemis I

Mission managers received weather information shortly before 4:00 am (Peruvian time) and decided to continue loading the SLS rocket tank . However, a liquid hydrogen leak detected in the quick-disconnect cavity provided by this compound in the engine area of ​​the core stage caused a series of complications for the mission.

Space agency engineers in charge of filling the tank stopped the flow of liquid hydrogen, “closed the valve used to fill and drain it, and then increased the pressure in a ground transfer line using helium to try to reseal it, ” according to the report. as NASA explained . However, this plan to solve the unforeseen event did not have the expected success and the team had to evaluate another option.

After spending all morning trying to fix this glitch, the space agency determined that it will not be possible to send the rocket and capsule off our planet today. Liquid hydrogen is one of the fuels used in the core stage of the rocket, so the leak caused the launch team to be unable to fill its tank despite trying various processes to try to fix it.

According to the official schedule for coverage of Artemis I , the launch window opened at 1:17 p.m. and would close at 3:17 p.m. (Peruvian time) on Saturday , September 3, 2022 . However, now that the new mission delay has been confirmed, a new date will have to be chosen by NASA. Although it was suggested that this could be Monday, September 5 , a publication by Dava Newman -director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology- suggests that it could be postponed until October.