On Monday, the space agency was unable to launch its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft for Artemis I — an uncrewed mission around the Moon. But today they are trying again. The space agency faced several issues on Monday. First, there was a delay in loading the propellants into the SLS due to nearby lightning, which took about 40 minutes. Then, just as they were able to launch, there was a problem with the rate at which the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen were being loaded, which meant another short wait. Then NASA faced another helium leak problem. They had encountered this before in their wet wedding dress rehearsals, which involve a kind of mock launch, going through all the stages of a real effort without actually getting up. What ultimately happened on Monday’s launch attempt was a problem with one of the rocket’s RS-25 engines. Engine three showed that it hadn’t cooled properly and – because of all the other reservations – time ran out and they had to scrub the launch. WATCHES | Monday’s Artemis I launch cleared:
NASA scrubs Artemis I launch, delaying return to Moon
NASA has postponed the launch of Artemis I, the first launch in the agency’s mission to return humans to the moon. Fuel leaks forced NASA to clean up the unpowered rocket’s launch. Today will give NASA a second chance to launch the Artemis I mission. “Right now we’re on track for a 2:17 p.m. launch. We have a two-hour window,” Jeremy Parsons, associate director at Kennedy Space Center’s Ground Exploration Systems, told media on Friday. “And right now the team has really done a fantastic job getting us out of the first launch attempt, fixing all the problems and getting us into a safe configuration for tomorrow’s launch attempt.” The countdown continues despite the business facing another problem on Saturday morning. Power to the rocket was briefly interrupted by a hydrogen leak, leaving engineers scrambling to plug what was believed to be a gap around a seal.
The weather is the wild card
Last week brought many scattered storms across the Space Coast. Meteorologist Melody Lovin said there is a 60 percent chance of favorable weather when the launch window opens. That rises to 80 percent closer to the end of the window, and she said she is optimistic. They will reevaluate the weather criteria for today’s launch three hours before the 2:17 p.m. ET window opens. If NASA is unable to launch today, the next chance is Monday, with a 90-minute window opening at 5:12 p.m. Favorable weather conditions for this window are 70 percent. However, Lovin said there is more uncertainty with that prediction. “I don’t expect the weather to be the best display in either launch window,” he said.
