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BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - NASA has pushed back a possible launch of the Artemis II moon mission to March after issues were encountered Monday during a test run at Kennedy Space Center.
The mission, which will send four astronauts on a historic trip around the moon, was expected to launch as early as Feb. 8.
However, during a wet dress rehearsal, a crucial pre-launch test, NASA said it encountered several problems, including issues with liquid hydrogen leaks while fueling the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
"Engineers pushed through several challenges during the two-day test and met many of the planned objectives," NASA said in a blog post early Tuesday.
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The team was eventually able to get the rocket filled with more than 700,000 gallons fuel containing liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen during the wet dress rehearsal.
The closeout crew also ventured onto the launch pad to finish closeout operations for the Orion capsule. The crew would be responsible for sealing astronauts into the spacecraft on launch day.
"This is precisely why we conduct a wet dress rehearsal," NASA administrator Jared Isaacman wrote in a post on X. "These tests are designed to surface issues before flight and set up launch day with the highest probability of success."
Teams will now review data from the rehearsal and conduct a second test ahead of the launch.
NASA officials plan to hold a news conference at 1 p.m. Tuesday to discuss results of the wet dress rehearsal.
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What they're saying:
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman confirmed Artemis II March launch window saying, "The team will fully review the data, troubleshoot each issue encountered during WDR, make the necessary repairs, and return to testing. We expect to conduct an additional wet dress rehearsal and then target the March window."
A trip around the moon
A crew of four astronauts—NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen—will embark on a 10-day trip around the moon.
From left to right, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen and NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Reid Wiseman stand outside before boarding their Orion spacecraft inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Sp …
The mission will be the first crewed mission to the moon in 50 years.
The astronauts, who have been in quarantine in Houston since Jan. 21, will be released from quarantine because of the delay.
NASA said the crew will enter quarantine again about two weeks before the next launch date. An exact launch date has not yet been announced.
"As always, safety remains our top priority, for our astronauts, our workforce, our systems, and the public," Isaacman said. "As noted above, we will only launch when we believe we are as ready to undertake this historic mission."
The Source: This article was written with information from NASA and previous FOX 35 reporting.