A further delay in the launch of the SLS rocket came after new problems with the “wet” test.
NASA has again delayed the launch of the SLS rocket and it is expected to take flight in August, after a new test is completed in June.
The US space agency has considered this new delay after a chain of problems has prevented the general wet test from being carried out successfully.
NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free says they will try again in early to mid-June.
The additional time will allow the team to resolve some lingering technical issues, perform additional checks on the rocket, and allow a third-party nitrogen gas supplier to perform any necessary renovations to its piping system.
It’s called a “wet trial” because the SLS will go through all the typical operations and procedures during an official launch, including filling its tanks with propellant.
And the launch to orbit in August
The delay of the test, essential for the mission, will mean that the SLS flight will not take place until, at least, August.
Once the test is complete, NASA can finally move forward with Artemis 1 . The mission will send an unmanned Orion capsule on a flight around the Moon designed to study how travel will affect human astronauts.
This test without passengers will give rise to a second mission, Artemis 2, where astronauts travel to the orbit of our satellite.