Nasa’s second attempt to launch Artemis moon rocket ruined by fuel leak

Name: Nasa postpones launch of Artemis 1 moon mission over rocket engine snag
Uploaded: 2022-09-03T15:49:40.000Z
Duration: 2 min 8 s
Description: Nasa postpones launch of Artemis 1 moon mission over rocket engine snag

The countdown was halted after three to four hours of trying to plug the hydrogen leak, which also occurred earlier this week

The earliest opportunity to try flying the rocket again would come during the next launch period that runs from September 19-30, or during an October window

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Nasa’s Artemis I rocket sits on the launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photo: AFP

Reuters

Published: 11:49pm, 3 Sep 2022Updated: 5:57am, 4 Sep 2022

For the second time in a week, Nasa on Saturday aborted an attempt to launch its giant, next-generation rocket, citing a stubborn fuel leak that the space agency said could delay the debut mission of its moon-to-Mars Artemis programme by at least several weeks.

Preflight operations were called off for the day about three hours before the 2:17pm EDT lift-off time targeted of the 32-storey Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and its Orion capsule from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The uncrewed test flight, aimed at launching the capsule out to the moon and back, was to have marked the inaugural voyage of both the SLS and Orion half a century after the last lunar mission of Apollo, forerunner of the Artemis programme.

An American flag flies in the breeze as Nasa’s new moon rocket sits on the launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photo: AP

The countdown was scrubbed after Kennedy Space Centre technicians made several failed attempts to fix a “large” leak of supercooled liquid hydrogen propellant being pumped into the rocket’s core-stage fuel tanks, agency officials said.

The initial launch attempt on Monday was likewise foiled by technical problems, including a different leaky fuel line, a faulty temperature sensor and cracks found in insulation foam.

Mission managers proceeded with a second launch attempt on Saturday once the earlier issues had been resolved to their satisfaction. Nasa had reserved another backup launch time, for either Monday or Tuesday, in case a third try was needed.

But after a review of data from the latest difficulties, Nasa concluded the hydrogen leak was too tricky and time-consuming to finish troubleshooting and fix on the launch pad before the current launch period allotted to the mission expires on Tuesday.

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Nasa postpones launch of Artemis 1 moon mission over rocket engine snag