NASA Addresses Orion Spacecraft's Helium Leak During Artemis II Mission
NASA investigates a helium leak in the Orion spacecraft's propulsion system during the Artemis II mission, ensuring crew safety and planning future design modifications.
NASA is addressing a helium leak detected in the Orion spacecraft's propulsion system during the ongoing Artemis II mission. The leak, identified in the helium pressure supply to the oxidizer side, has not impacted the spacecraft's performance.
"The leak is not to space. It's internal to the system across some of our valves, and we really need to characterize that to see what, if any, modifications we might need to make in the future," said Jeff Radigan, NASA's lead flight director for Artemis II.
The Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, is set to jettison its European-built service module before reentering Earth's atmosphere. This module houses the affected valves, which will burn up upon reentry, preventing post-mission inspection. To gather necessary data, mission managers canceled a planned piloting demonstration to conduct additional tests on the propulsion system.
Despite the leak, all propulsion burns have performed nominally, and the mission remains on track. The Artemis II crew—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen—are scheduled to return to Earth on April 10, concluding the first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972.
NASA plans to redesign the helium valve system for future missions to prevent similar issues. The next flight of an Orion spacecraft, Artemis III, is scheduled for 2027 and will incorporate these design changes.