NASA Moon Mission Launch Delayed to March After Test

AFP/APP

Washington: NASA said on Tuesday it is delaying until March the launch of its first crewed flyby mission to the Moon in more than 50 years after encountering leaks during final tests.

The mishaps occurred during a run-through known as a “wet dress rehearsal,” dashing hopes that the mission could launch as soon as Sunday. The next possible launch window now opens on March 6.

The two-day test involved filling the Space Launch System rocket with propellants, including liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. While teams were initially able to work through some hydrogen leaks, the problem worsened as the simulated countdown reached about T-minus five minutes, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a statement.

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Operations were halted, Isaacman said, adding that “we will only launch when we believe we are as ready to undertake this historic mission.”

NASA officials explained during a Tuesday briefing that hydrogen is particularly energetic, tiny, and difficult to contain. In addition to the leaks, teams also had to troubleshoot a valve issue related to hatch pressurization, as well as audio communication dropouts.

The latest leaks mirror issues that delayed the Artemis 1 launch for months. That uncrewed test mission ultimately orbited the Moon in 2022.

John Honeycutt, head of the Artemis 2 Mission Management Team, said scientists had been “aggressive” in testing to understand the Artemis 1 leaks. However, he noted that ground testing has limitations.

“On the ground, we’re pretty limited as to how much realism we can put into the test. We try to test like we fly, but this interface is a very complex interface. This one caught us off guard,” Honeycutt said.

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“To me, the big takeaway was we got a chance for the rocket to talk to us, and it did just that,” he added.

Moon Mission

Mission managers said they are analyzing the data collected and making necessary repairs ahead of plans for another dress rehearsal. For now, officials said the fixes can be carried out at the Florida launchpad.

The Artemis 2 mission will send a team of four astronauts on a flyby of the Moon during an approximately 10-day journey. The mission is intended to lay the groundwork for a future Artemis phase that would include a crewed lunar landing.

US President Donald Trump has expressed his desire to return astronauts to the Moon as soon as possible to “assert American leadership in space.”

The Artemis 2 astronauts, who had been in quarantine in Houston, were released following the delay.

“Immense pride seeing the rocket reach 100% fuel load last night, especially knowing how challenging the scenario was for our launch team doing the dangerous and unforgiving work,” mission commander Reid Wiseman said on X.

“The crew just shared a peaceful breakfast with our families, and we jump back into training tomorrow to start our preps for a March launch to the Moon,” he added.