NASA aborted the second attempt at the Space Launch System’s first launch on September 3 after it failed to resolve a liquid hydrogen leak while refueling a rocket, potentially delaying it. Postponed the mission until October.

NASA canceled the launch, which was scheduled for a two-hour window that opened at 2:17 p.m. East Launch Complex 39B here, three hours before the window opens. Delegation leaders concluded that they had run out of time to repair a liquid hydrogen leak discovered a few hours earlier.

The controller noticed a leak in a coupling that quickly disconnected for a flow of liquid hydrogen in the SLS core stage shortly after the core stage feed started. Engineers have repeatedly tried to reassemble the fitting, first letting it heat up, then starting liquid hydrogen through it again, thinking the temperature change would seal it back. It didn’t work.

The second technique is to stop the flow of hydrogen gas and close the valve, then use helium pressure in the ground system to force the hose back into place. This also didn’t work, as did the second attempt to heat then cool the coupling.

One possible cause of the leak, he said, was an “inadvertently high pressure” of the liquid hydrogen stream just before refueling began, possibly due to human error. It may have damaged the quick-disconnect mounting seal, but Sarafin says it’s too early to tell. Officials have ruled out a launch attempt during the remaining days of the current launch window, known by NASA as Launch Window 25 and ending September 6. Jim Free, Deputy Director of Exploration Systems Administration of NASA, said: “The launch phase 25 is certainly not out of the question. evolution.

The leak exceeded the concentration limit of 4%, due to flammability hazards, by a factor of two or three, said Mike Sarafin, NASA’s Artemis mission director. The leak is much larger than what was discovered during the first launch attempt on Monday, which is not a limitation for the launch. “As for the leak we saw on Monday, it was a manageable leak. It’s not a manageable leak,” he said at a briefing hours after the inspection.

The next two opportunities, phase 26 and 27 launches, will run from September 20 to October 1. October 4 and October 17-31, respectively. “The 26 and 27 launch stages will really depend on what choices the team comes back to” early next week, he said.

These options mainly revolve around whether the quick disconnect coupling can be repaired on the pedestal or if the work needs to be re-done in the Vehicle Assemble House (VAB). Gasket repair offers the ability to get work done earlier and check the repair using liquid hydrogen from the gasket, which is not an option in the VAB.

However, the missile’s Flight Termination System (FTS) is only certified during the current launch period. NASA is expected to seek an extension from the US Space Force, which operates in the eastern range, if it wants to keep the vehicle on platform and allow launch as early as late September. If the FTS certification is not renewed, the vehicle will have to return to VAB for a battery check and replacement. “We don’t have an FTS waiver at the moment after 25 days,” Free said. Until we have that, we have to step back,” Free said. “We will work with the squad to try to achieve that.”

Other issues with being on a cushion include the effects of staying on the Orion spacecraft’s cushion for a long time. Tropical weather could also force the rocket to return, regardless of technical limitations. “We had to look at exactly what work we needed to do,” says Sarafin. “It’s a bit early to say what the right path forward is.”

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson reiterated during the press conference that the agency will not attempt to launch Artemis 1 until it feels ready. He added that he did not perceive any pressure, either from within the agency, or from the White House or Congress, to launch the mission. “If I knew, I would try to stop it,” he said. “But we don’t feel the pressure.”

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