Washington 31 August : The US space agency is now planning to launch on September 3 for the launch date for its Artemis I Moon mission that was cancelled on Monday due to a technical issue with one of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket’s engines.NASA Mission directors met to share information and devise an approach to deal with issues that came up when the mission was launched to conduct the flight test.
“During the launch attempt, the teams could not cool down four engines of the RS-25 to less than 420 degrees Fahrenheit, with engine 3 having higher temperatures than the other engines” the agency stated in a statement late Tuesday.
Teams also noticed the hydrogen leak on one of the components of the tail service mast’s umbilical quick-disconnect, also known as the purge can.They dealt with the leak manually adjusting the flow rates of propellant.
“In the next few days, teams will alter and test propellant loading procedures to follow a similar procedure to the one that was successful in the Green Run at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi,” said NASA.
The new procedures will perform the chill-down test of the engines, also known as the kick-start bleed test approximately 30 to 45 mins prior in the countdown phase of the fast fill liquid hydrogen phase of the central stage.
Teams are also setting up platforms at Launch Pad 39B to allow engineers to access the purge container on the tail mast’s umbilical.
Once access has been established, technicians will conduct tests and torque connection points if necessary according to NASA.
The Artemis I launch is part of an overall space program that will take astronauts back to the moon after 2025.
The first round trip test mission is scheduled to be completed in around 42 days.
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