Orion's Internal Helium Leak Prompts Extra Testing on Artemis II

NASA scrapped a planned piloting demonstration on the Artemis II mission to squeeze in additional propulsion system testing after detecting a small internal helium leak aboard the Orion spacecraft. The leak occurs across valves in the helium pressurization system that feeds oxidizer to the ship’s engines, housed in the European-built service module.

Critically, the leak is internal - not venting to space - and has had no impact on engine performance so far. All propulsion burns have executed nominally. The affected service module will be jettisoned before reentry and destroyed in the atmosphere, so it poses no risk to the crew’s return. However, the data gathered from Wednesday’s extra test will inform what valve redesigns are needed for future Artemis missions.

The rest of the Artemis II lunar flyby mission has gone smoothly aside from ongoing issues with the spacecraft’s waste management system. The four-person crew is on track for a Pacific Ocean splashdown Friday evening.