NASA has fixed the faults in the rocket of the lunar mission Artemis 2. When will it be possible to launch the expedition with a human crew
NASA's SLS rocket, for the Artemis II mission (photo PAT BENIC / UPI / Profimedia)
NASA has fixed the technical faults of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to be used in the Artemis 2 mission and continues to consider the launch of this manned mission around the Moon in April, reports Space.com on Wednesday, taken over by Agerpres.
Engineers have found a solution to restore the steady flow of helium to the upper stage of the SLS rocket, according to an announcement made Tuesday (March 3) by NASA officials.
“Checks on the rocket and spacecraft will continue in the coming weeks as NASA prepares to place the rocket back on the launch pad later this month ahead of a possible launch in April,” NASA wrote in the update.
Helium leaks
The repair work took place inside the massive Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida.
The SLS rocket of the Artemis 2 mission and the Orion capsule that will carry the crew have been in VAB since February 25, when they returned to the hangar from KSC's launch pad 39B. Just a few days earlier, the Artemis 2 mission had completed a dress rehearsal consisting of two days of pre-launch procedures.
Following this test, however, NASA noticed a disruption in the flow of helium to the SLS upper stage. This was a significant problem because helium pressurizes the rocket's fuel tanks. Retreating from the launch pad was the only option, as the affected area of the upper stage was not accessible from the platform.
The problem has thrown out a possible March launch for Artemis 2, which will send four astronauts on a roughly 10-day flight around the moon. It will be the first manned flight to lunar orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972.
The new launch windows
The next Artemis 2 release window opens in April, with opportunities on April 1, April 3-6, and April 30. And these options apparently remain in play, thanks to recent technical interventions.
These interventions focused on the sealing gasket of an interface through which the flow of helium passes from the ground equipment to the upper stage of the SLS. This gasket was obstructing the interface, an obstruction known as quick disconnect.
“The team removed the quick disconnect, reassembled the system and began verifying the intervention of the upper stage by running a low flow of helium through the mechanism to ensure the problem was resolved,” NASA officials wrote in Tuesday's update. “Engineers are evaluating what allowed the seal to come off to prevent the problem from happening again.”
The Artemis 2 team uses the time the rocket-capsule binomial is in the hangar in other ways. For example, technicians are replacing the flight batteries on the SLS's center stage, upper stage and solid-fuel engines, and charging the batteries for the Orion capsule's emergency evacuation system. It also “activates a new set of flight termination system batteries prior to full retesting of the system,” NASA officials wrote.
This latest news about Artemis 2 comes on the heels of a larger announcement in which NASA said it was restructuring the Artemis program. Thus, Artemis 3 will no longer be the first mission in the program that will send astronauts to the Moon. This will now be Artemis 4, which is planned to fly in 2028. Artemis 3 will remain in Earth orbit and will include a rendezvous between Orion and one or both of the private lunar modules that NASA has contracted for the Artemis program to conduct a series of tests.
