Month: April 2022

Final preparations on the umbilicals to ensure connectivity between the mobile launcher, the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft were completed this evening.

The umbilicals provide power, communications, coolant, and fuel to different parts of the rocket. Additional accessories provide access and stabilize the rocket and spacecraft. During launch, each umbilical releases from its connection point, allowing the rocket and spacecraft to lift off safely from the launch pad.

Teams have also completed a final walkdown at the pad to verify the rocket and ground equipment are in the correct configuration for tanking operations checking to ensure no foreign object debris is present near the rocket that could present a hazard during the test.

The next update will be provided in the morning of April 14, prior to the mission management team’s pre-tanking briefing where they will review the status of operations and determine if they are “go” to proceed toward tanking operations.

Real-time updates will be provided on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account with “go” for tanking targeted on April 14. NASA is also streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel.

The mission management team for Artemis I met this morning to review the status of operations and continues to press ahead toward terminal countdown for the wet dress rehearsal test. Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force Space Launch Delta 45 currently predict favorable weather conditions for tanking on April 14. There is currently a 5% chance of lightning within five nautical miles of the launch pad when tanking begins. Weather constraints stipulate there must be less than a 20% chance lightning within 5 nautical miles of pad during the first hour of tanking. Winds must not be above 37.5 knots and the temperature cannot be below 41 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Later today teams will perform a pre-launch walkdown of the rocket and ensure the Space Launch System’s core stage is prepared for the upcoming loading operations. 

NASA will provide live updates on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account. NASA is also streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel. 

Overnight, launch controllers powered up the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System rocket’s core stage. Communications links between Orion and the Mission Control Center at Johnson Space Center in Houston were verified, and preparations of the four RS-25 engines, which will not be lit during the wet dress rehearsal, continued. Over the next several hours, controllers will charge Orion’s batteries and conduct final preparations and closeout activities for the umbilicals.

The umbilicals provide power, communications, coolant, and fuel to different parts of the rocket. Additional accessories provide access and stabilize the rocket and spacecraft. During launch, each umbilical releases from its connection point, allowing the rocket and spacecraft to lift off safely from the launch pad.

The mission management team is scheduled to meet at 11 a.m. EDT to review the status of operations. The next update will be posted after the conclusion of the meeting.

NASA will provide live updates on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account. NASA is also streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel.

At approximately 5 p.m. EDT today, the launch team arrived at their stations inside the Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The countdown will begin 30 minutes later at 5:30 p.m. or L-45 hours, 10 minutes before the initial target T-0 for the wet dress rehearsal test for NASA’s Artemis I mission. Teams are proceeding with a modified test, primarily focused on tanking the core stage and minimal propellant operations on the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) with the ground systems at Kennedy. Tanking operations are scheduled to occur on Thursday, April 14.

Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force 45^th Space Wing predict favorable weather for propellant loading operations.  Weather constraints stipulate there must be less than a 20% chance lightning within 5 nautical miles of pad during the first hour of tanking. Winds also must not be above 37.5 knots and the temperature cannot be below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.

Overnight, teams will power up Orion and the Space Launch System core stage, charge core stage battery, and prepare the four RS-25 engines, which will not be lit during the test.

During the test, the timing for some events on account of several planned operational demonstrations tied to specific capabilities and test objectives may differ from the day of launch countdown. These demonstrations include tests on the cryogenic systems and an approximately three-minute hold inside the terminal count, which would not normally occur on launch day. If needed, the test team may also hold as necessary to verify conditions before resuming the countdown, or use the test window or extend beyond it, if consumables and resources allow them to complete test objectives.

In addition to updates on this blog, NASA will provide live updates on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account. NASA is also streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel. Activity at the launch pad will likely not be visible during the majority of the countdown, but some venting may be seen during tanking on April 14.

The next operational update will be posted the morning of April 13.

In continued preparations for the Artemis I wet dress rehearsal  test, with tanking targeted for Monday, teams encountered an issue maintaining helium purge pressure on the upper stage engine after change-out of a regulator on the mobile launcher. The RL10 engine on the upper stage uses helium to purge the engine and also to activate upper stage valves during wet dress rehearsal operations. After initial troubleshooting, the team reestablished normal helium purge, and is continuing work to determine the cause of a restriction in the helium flow. Engineers will conduct troubleshooting tomorrow to confirm and characterize system performance. If needed, the mission management team will meet Sunday to disposition any adjustments in the procedures or modifications in test objectives as necessary. After the wet dress rehearsal test, SLS and Orion will return to the Vehicle Assembly Building, and engineers will conduct additional inspections of the related flight systems to further evaluate system performance. The Space Launch System rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the supporting ground system elements remain in stable condition.

The countdown for the two-day test is currently slated to begin with call to stations beginning at 5 pm EDT on Saturday, April 9 with T-0 planned for 2:40 pm on Monday, April 11. While engineers investigate the issue, teams continue to refine the test schedule to account for insights gained during the previous runs and activities, or test objectives, that were completed earlier this week and no longer need to be included in the next test run, such as configuring ground support equipment. Pending additional analysis, NASA expects to have a forward plan tomorrow for wet dress rehearsal testing.

Check back at this blog for an update on wet dress rehearsal testing for the Artemis I mission. NASA is streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel. Real-time updates will be provided on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account with “go” for tanking.

Teams are preparing for the next attempt of the Artemis I  wet dress rehearsal, pending range availability and restoration of propellants and gases during the test. Through the past two test runs April 3 and 4, engineers accomplished several test objectives that will prepare the teams and integrated systems for launch:

• • Configuring Launch Pad 39B and the mobile launcher for the test, just as it will have to be prepared for launch
  • Clearing personnel and equipment from the launch pad after configuration in order to proceed with propellant loading
  • Powering up Orion and the SLS rocket systems in launch configuration, including the solid rocket boosters, the core stage, and the interim cryogenic propulsion stage
  • Checking out and verifying the Orion spacecraft countdown and commanding by flight controllers at NASA Johnson Space Flight in Houston
  • Checking out the guidance, navigation and control system and all the integrated software that operates across the rocket, Orion, ground systems and ground support centers including the Launch Control Center
  • Verifying and checking out all the range safety and systems with the range
  • Draining the liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen after the test
  • Powering down the rocket, the spacecraft and ground systems and putting them in a safe configuration

All these activities are necessary for a successful launch or in the event launch controllers decide not to proceed with launch if a technical or weather issue arises during or prior to the countdown. Completing these objectives will allow the team to use the next test opportunity to focus on executing the remaining objectives during dynamic operations, such as loading the cryogenic propellant and working through the launch countdown.

Inspections after the second test showed the vent valve that prohibited the team from proceeding with loading liquid hydrogen was configured physically in a closed position, which prevented it from being commanded remotely to an open position. The valve positioning has since been corrected.

Teams were also able to demonstrate their ability to work through several issues, such as severe weather, delays in getting a gaseous nitrogen supply source provided by a commercial vendor up and running, and fixing systems like fans that did not perform as expected.

NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the supporting ground system elements are all in excellent condition and in a configuration that supports the next opportunity.

Listen to a replay of the latest briefing, and check back at this blog for an update on the targeted date for resuming WDR testing for the Artemis I mission.