Cellular Launcher 1 (ML1, or ML) is on its approach again to the Automobile Meeting Constructing (VAB) on the Kennedy House Middle after efficiently launching the SLS rocket and Orion/European Service Module duo on the Artemis I mission from Launch Advanced 39B (LC-39B) on Nov. 16, 2022.
The ML now must be repaired from injury sustained throughout SLS’s debut launch in addition to bear a collection of modifications to organize it for its function on future SLS launches the place crew will board the Orion for departure to the Moon and Lunar Gateway.
Put up-Artemis I launch ML injury evaluation
Overall, despite the amount of time it took to safely gain access to the ML due to elevator damage, the overwhelming majority of the injury sustained from SLS’s first launch was as anticipated, in accordance with David Sumner, Undertaking Supervisor for ML1 on Artemis II, in an interview with NASASpaceflight.
“We had some expectations of some smaller tools that we form of anticipated we’d see some injury, however we did see another areas that some issues occurred that we weren’t absolutely anticipating,” Sumner defined.
“The elevators took some damage. We’ve two elevators on the Cellular Launcher that go all the best way up the tower. These took some injury, after which we had some pneumatic and electrical panels, some which might be up the tower, that took some injury as nicely that we weren’t anticipating.”
General, Sumner defined that the ML construction itself was in good situation, and no modifications have been wanted to facilitate the ML’s rollback to the VAB.
“Immediately following launch, we had crews exit and begin safing, doing the air checks and safing the ML,” added Sumner. “That took a few days, securing the ML, to permit different folks doing structural assessments on the ground grating, ensuring that the ground was secure to stroll on.”
Moreover, the elevators would require substantial refurbishment, and the blast doorways which have been in place for Artemis I to guard the elevator shafts and vehicles may even require upgrades primarily based on their failures because of the energy of the SLS rocket.
Conversely, the swing arms on the ML largely held up per preflight predictions, with some anticipated, minimal injury towards the ends of the arms famous.
Particularly, quite a few mushy items supplies on the swing arms, equivalent to hoses and catch again nets, have been misplaced in the course of the launch.
Nonetheless, it was a component of the ML that didn’t obtain a lot consideration in the course of the Artemis I launch marketing campaign — however that will probably be very important to Artemis II and past — that was the topic of crucial post-liftoff checkouts.
This morning at 6:40 am EST, the cell launcher atop the crawler transporter 2, had first movement in its roll again to the Automobile Meeting Constructing following the launch of Artemis I on Nov. 16 at 1:47 am EST. pic.twitter.com/FETL4Embal
— NASA’s Exploration Floor Programs (@NASAGroundSys) December 8, 2022
“The opposite large constraint for us to roll again to the VAB was the Crew Entry Arm,” stated Sumner. “It was in a retracted place; to ensure that us to get into the VAB, we have to prolong the CAA, and so on the pad, we have been in a position to display that we may swing the CAA. That was a giant deal.”
The one different merchandise of notice when it comes to making ready the ML for rollback was eradicating and or securing any items of apparatus that have been free.
By way of classes realized from the general Artemis I pad movement and any modifications that may stem from that factor of the method, Sumner famous that all the pieces went pretty nicely in that regard.
Refurbishment, modifications, and timelines for Artemis II
In contrast to rollout and rollback operations with SLS, which have been carried out with out breaks, the rollback of the empty ML will happen throughout two days.
This break permits groups time to relaxation and never work in a single day when not required.
The ML will probably be introduced again to only outdoors the VAB on Thursday, Dec. 8, the place it’ll then spend the evening outdoor earlier than groups resume roll operations on Friday, Dec. 9 to maneuver the ML fully inside Excessive Bay 3 of the VAB.
As soon as there, the ML will spend between 4 to 6 weeks present process continued post-launch assessments earlier than the Crawler Transporter groups will choose up the ML and transfer it out of the VAB to the West Park Web site — which is positioned to the north of the VAB and is the western-most of the 2 ML park websites.
“We’re fairly particular on January 2023,” stated Sumner. “Someday in January, we ought to be on the West Park Web site.”
There, the ML will bear a majority of its refurbishment and modification work, together with set up of the crucial Emergency Egress System {hardware} which will probably be wanted for crew flight operations with Artemis II.
“What’s thrilling for Artemis II is that’s going to be our first manned mission again to the Moon,” stated Sumner. “And so the vast majority of our focus is basically within the higher degree of the tower of the Cellular Launcher, mainly the 260-foot [79-meter] degree and above.”
The higher ranges of the ML would be the focus of the lion’s share of modification work to organize the SLS ML for crew flights on Artemis II. (Credit score: Stephen Marr/NSF)
“And we’re actually centered on that crew degree, ensuring it’s prepared. Ensuring the Crew Entry Arm is prepared for the crew, ensuring that’s licensed. Getting the Emergency Egress System put in, ensuring it’s examined coming off the crew degree.”
Whereas on the West Park Web site, the entry platforms for the 4 egress baskets — which might be used to move personnel safely away from the tower within the occasion of an emergency — will probably be put in.
“Once we’re on the West Park Web site, we’re planning to put in three totally different platforms on the aspect of the ML tower, and a kind of platforms goes to have a set of 4 hoists on high of it.”
The hoists are roughly 99 meters (325 toes) above floor degree and can every have a cable that may stretch all the way down to the bottom.
This cable is crucial to how the general Emergency Egress System will probably be related between floor structure and the ML following rollout of a totally stacked SLS rocket destined to hold crew.
“Once we get to the pad, we’ll stretch a cable down all the best way to the bottom floor after which out to the perimeter fringe of Launch Advanced 39B the place our touchdown — we name it the terminus — space is. And we’ll rigidity these cables and join them as much as the tower.”
That can present the zip-line-like wires — like these used all through the Shuttle Program and nonetheless used at neighboring 39A for Falcon 9 crew launches — that the egress baskets would journey to the bottom from the Crew Entry Arm degree of the ML.
These hoists will probably be put in on the West Park Web site, however their major take a look at and integration, in addition to verification and validation, should happen at pad 39B.
This will necessitate another trip out to the launch pad for the ML prior to Artemis II stacking.
General, the ML is predicted to spend just a few months on the West Park Web site, although express timelines should not at present recognized because of the uncertainty that continues to be in post-Artemis I launch injury refurbishment timelines.
Additionally on the West Park Web site, pneumatics modifications will probably be carried out on the crew entry degree. Groups may even set up respiratory air and gaseous nitrogen stations and techniques that might be wanted within the occasion of emergencies.
Extra work on the West Park Web site may even embrace modifications to the ignition overpressure safety/sound suppression system that have been deliberate earlier than the Artemis I launch.
Water flows from the rain chicken heads onto the ML deck because the engine ignition sequence progresses for Artemis I. The rain birds will probably be modified for various water movement patterns for Artemis II. (Credit score: Nathan Barker/NSF)
“The ignition overpressure sound system down on the base of the ML the place all of the water comes out at time of launch — we’re making some modifications to the rain chicken heads,” famous Sumner.
The change necessitates taking the heads off of the rain birds and putting in new ones that may give the water a unique movement throughout the ML because it deadens the acoustic atmosphere at RS-25 engine and Stable Rocket Booster ignition.
As soon as these modifications and refurbishments are full on the West Park Web site, the Crawler Transporter will as soon as once more choose up the ML and haul it out to LC-39B for its Emergency Egress System testing.
After arriving on the pad and connecting the zip-line-like cables from the hoists to the touchdown space, the hoists will then be used to individually raise the 4 egress baskets to their correct positions, the place the hampers will then be secured and locked in place forward of testing.
At current, testing and validation of the Emergency Egress System will contain using weights and a number of runs of the hampers in addition to drills to make sure personnel are accustomed to learn how to make the most of the system ought to they should.
Previous to the graduation of the Shuttle program, the slide wire emergency egress baskets have been by no means examined with people, one thing that induced concern throughout STS-41D/Discovery’s on-pad abort in June 1984, which led to an engine shutdown on the pad at T-6.4 seconds.
Throughout that abort, launch personnel didn’t wish to inform the crew to make use of the slide wire baskets as they’d not been absolutely examined.
Following the Challenger catastrophe in 1986 and a must re-certify the whole Shuttle program earlier than STS-26/Discovery’s Return To Flight mission, emergency egress basket coaching with astronauts onboard was ultimately carried out; nonetheless, subsequent checks of the system utilized ballasts as a substitute of people.
In line with Sumner, the present plan is to likewise use ballasts for testing and validation of the whole Emergency Egress System for SLS — although the eventual use of people in a take a look at has not been fully dominated out right now.
This particular factor of the ML’s return to pad 39B carries some uncertainty towards the general schedule, as certifying the processes for putting in the Emergency Egress System and validating its total use may take “slightly little bit of time.”
Likewise, the Crew Entry Arm may even be a spotlight of the ML’s return journey to 39B earlier than stacking for Artemis II.
SLS throughout rollout, shortly after stopping to retract the Crew Entry Arm for the rest of roll operations to LC-39B in early Nov. 2022. (Credit score: Stephen Marr/NSF)
Whereas the choice was made to put in the arm and put it by means of a few of its maneuvers in the course of the Artemis I movement, it was notably not used on the identical instances when it will throughout a launch countdown with crew.
To that finish, the CAA truly must be licensed for human flight, and this may contain transferring it throughout varied wind occasions and at varied wind angles in addition to at totally different arm motion speeds.
All of this may validate and confirm that the arm is secure for people to be on throughout sure climate occasions in addition to the arm’s skill to maneuver underneath varied wind profiles within the method it might want to on launch day.
Beneath nominal operations, the arm will transfer very slowly away from the Orion capsule at T-6 minutes. However, ought to an emergency come up after that time that doesn’t require activation of the Launch Abort System however may require the crew to rapidly egress Orion and the ML, the arm must transfer again into place far faster than when it retracted.
This is without doubt one of the motion checks that will probably be studied when the ML makes its return journey to the pad in 2023.
These particular checks for the CAA don’t require an entire 100% seize of information in any respect the varied wind ranges and wind speeds the CAA might need to function in.
In contrast to its retracted rollout place (pictured), the CAA have to be absolutely prolonged to its “mate” place the place Orion could be earlier than getting into the VAB as there isn’t a approach to swing the arm as soon as contained in the constructing. (Credit score: Julia Bergeron/NSF)
For this explicit a part of CAA verification and validation, solely 80% of the totally different variables are wanted from an information standpoint, after which sufficient information may have been collected that fashions may simulate the remaining 20% and confirm the whole envelope of wind load and directional operations the arm may encounter.
As soon as all testing and verification and validation operations are full at LC-39B, the Crawler Transporter will once again pick up the ML and return it to High Bay 3 inside the VAB where final multi-element verification and validation work will take place.
As soon as these steps are full, the Cellular Launcher will probably be prepared for stacking operations for the Artemis II mission which can return people to the neighborhood of the Moon.
Whereas the crew of Artemis II has not but been introduced, it is already known that a Canadian Space Agency astronaut will have one of the seats on board the mission — turning into the primary non-American to journey to the Moon.
At current, Artemis II is deliberate to launch no sooner than mid-2024 on a free return trajectory which can contain a closest method flyby to the Moon of seven,400 km.
(Lead picture: The ML on its return journey to the VAB on Dec. 8 after efficiently launching Artemis I on Nov. 16, 2022. Credit score: NSF/House Coast Dwell)
