NASA has been forced to abort plans for a March launch of the Artemis 2 mission to the moon after a technical issue set the project back weeks. TheArtemis 2mission wasset to take off in the coming daysas the agency planned to send four astronauts around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

An initial date for launch was set for March 6, although officials announced on Saturday that any hopes for a March take-off have been scrapped. Posting on X, NASA administrator Jared Isaacman announced that a problem with the helium delivery system has pushed back any hopes of beginning their10-day journey around the far side of the Moonand back to Earth, within the next two months. Isaacman wrote: "Last evening, the team was unable to get helium flow through the vehicle. This occurred during a routine operation to repressurise the system. We observed a similar failure signature on Artemis I.

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"As mentioned previously, we will begin preparations for rollback, and this will take the March launch window out of consideration.

"I understand people are disappointed by this development. That disappointment is felt most by the team at NASA, who have been working tirelessly to prepare for this great endeavour. "

This isn't the first setback for Artemis 2, with the ship's first rehearsal in early February cut short due to a hydrogen fuel leak at the launch pad, an issue that was later resolved.

The four Artemis II crew members, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch and Victor Glover, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, are on standby, ready for a future launch.

The NASA chief went on to compare the setback with that of the original moon missions more than 50 years ago.

He added: "During the 1960s, when NASA achieved what most thought was impossible, and what has never been repeated since, there were many setbacks. One historic example is that Neil Armstrong spent less than 11 hours in space on Gemini 8 before his mission ended prematurely due to a technical issue. A little over three years later, he became the first man to walk on the Moon.

Source: Daily Express :: World Feed