NASA’s third attempt at a modified space launch system (SLS) rehearsal was halted on Thursday when a liquid hydrogen leak was detected during tanker operations. The space agency is planning another wet dress rehearsal for the moon rocket no earlier than April 21.
This is the latest of several failures of the rocket’s wet dress rehearsal, including time delays, malfunctioning fans and valve problems.
“All the problems we are facing are procedural and lessons have been learned,” Mike Sarafin, head of the Artemis mission, told a news conference on Friday.
A wet dress rehearsal is when a 322-foot rocket is refueled while sitting on top of a launch pad, and the team goes through a false countdown to prepare for launch day. The rehearsal is crucial to the launch of Artemis I, an unmanned mission to the moon and back, and the first step toward bringing people back to the moon by 2026.
This wet dress rehearsal was first scheduled for April 1, but was initially postponed due to technical problems that prevented the crew from refueling the rocket. Before the next test date on April 11, the team discovered a faulty valve, which led them to modify the rehearsal and plan to power only the main stage of the SLS, not the upper stage.
G / O Media may receive a commission
14% discount
Logitech C920 webcam
Looks good. Capable of 1080p HD video at 30 frames per second, it comes with a dual microphone to help you capture your voice properly, and has special software that makes it easy to set up.
The third attempt on Thursday, unfortunately, was not the charm, as the team found a leak of liquid hydrogen from the tail service mast, which connects the base of the mobile launcher with the main stage. Liquid hydrogen is one of the two propellants used for the rocket, and the other is liquid oxygen.
By the time the wet dress rehearsal was stopped, about 49% of the tank was filled with liquid oxygen and only 5% of the other tank was filled with liquid hydrogen. The team successfully managed to cool the lines used to refuel in the upper stage, but failed to supply fuel to the stage due to a valve problem.
However, the team behind the SLS rocket says it is not surrendering. “There is no doubt that we will complete this test campaign and that we will look at the hardware and the data will take us to the next steps,” said Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis’ director of launch, during the teleconference. “We will launch this vehicle … and we will be ready to fly.”
Add Comment