Wednesday, February 4, 2026

NASA deals with SLS hydrogen leaks again

02/04/2026

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By Jeff Foust

In today's edition: NASA deals with SLS hydrogen leaks again, a smallsat advocacy group changes course, an Amazon executive raises doubts about orbital data centers and more.

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Top Stories

NASA officials defended their preparations for the Artemis 2 mission after a fueling test suffered the same hydrogen leaks seen on Artemis 1. Agency officials said Tuesday that they were investigating what caused the leaks during fueling of the Space Launch System rocket and again during the terminal countdown portion of the wet dress rehearsal. Hydrogen leaks were an issue during Artemis 1, scrubbing two launch attempts, but NASA said last month it believed it had made sufficient changes in hardware and procedures to address them. One factor, they acknowledged, is the low flight rate of the SLS and "bespoke components" of the vehicle. Officials said they think they can make repairs to address the leaks while at the pad, avoiding rolling the rocket back to the VAB. [SpaceNews]

An industry group that spent the last decade promoting the development of smallsat constellations is shifting gears. The SmallSat Alliance, formed in 2016, originally advocated for the development of proliferated satellite constellations. With such systems now being deployed by the Space Development Agency and others, the SmallSat Alliance says it now wants to shift its focus to ways proliferated constellations can better support the warfighter. Chuck Beames, chairman of the group, likened the current moment to the early days of the personal computing revolution, when standalone machines became transformative only after they were connected through networks, later supercharged by advances in software and processing power. [SpaceNews]

The Space Force wants to think more about operations in cislunar space. At an event last month, Gen. Shawn Bratton, deputy chief of space operations, said operations in cislunar space could affect missile warning, space domain awareness and the protection of satellites operating far from Earth, where monitoring and defense are more difficult. He said thinking about commanding and controlling spacecraft in that region is part of the service's 15-year planning horizon, Space Force 2040. That planning also involves thinking about offensive space operations as well as doubling the number of personnel. [SpaceNews]

A Senate committee delayed consideration of a bill that would streamline FCC reviews of satellite license applications. The SAT Streamlining Act, introduced last month, would require the FCC to rule on space and ground station applications within one year, with no more than 180 days of extensions for "extraordinary circumstances." At a Senate Commerce Committee session Tuesday, though, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the committee's ranking member, raised concerns about a provision that would automatically approve such applications if the FCC does not either approve or deny them by the deadline. That could, she noted, allow the automatic approval of SpaceX's proposal for one million orbital data center satellites. She proposed an amendment to remove that provision, but a lack of a quorum prevented the committee from considering that amendment or advancing the bill. [SpaceNews]

Other News

An Amazon executive is skeptical about the near-term prospects for orbital data centers. Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services, said at a conference Tuesday that it would be difficult and not economical to launch large numbers of satellites into orbit to serve as data centers. He said the industry is "pretty far" from being able to seriously consider such systems, despite interest from SpaceX and other companies. [Reuters]

India's space agency ISRO would get a small budget increase for its next fiscal year. A budget proposal released by the Indian government would provide about 137 billion rupees ($1.52 billion) for ISRO in the 2026-27 fiscal year, a 2% increase from last year's budget but a 10% increase over revised spending levels for 2025-26, suggesting the government did not spend the full amount allocated to ISRO in the previous year. The focus of the budget is on hardware and mission development, particularly in space technology and science. [The Hindu]

A reanalysis of images from a NASA Mercury mission has provided evidence the planet is still geologically active. Researchers used AI tools to examine images from the MESSENGER mission to Mercury, detecting streaks on the walls of some craters. The streaks, scientists speculate, are caused when impacts create fractures that release volatiles below the surface. Those volatiles, ices heated up by the sun into gas, create streaks down the sides of the craters. The streaks may be residue from the volatiles or fresh rocky material exposed by the volatiles. [Sky & Telescope]

The longtime CEO of The Planetary Society is stepping down. Bill Nye announced last week that he will leave the post of CEO effective Feb. 17, and be replaced by the organization's chief operating officer, Jennifer Vaughn. Nye, who became CEO of the organization 15 years ago after a career that included becoming famous for the "Bill Nye the Science Guy" television show, will remain on the society's board of directors. He will also be its first "chief ambassador," representing the space science advocacy group at public events and on Capitol Hill. [The Planetary Society]

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There's Cold, and Then There's Liquid Hydrogen Cold

"One of the things about having space hardware is that tank is rated for hydrogen at –423 degrees. So, when you stack that up against the local forecast of 25 to 27, there's certainly things we take into account as it relates to flying, but sitting out at the pad it's in pretty good shape."

– Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, NASA Artemis launch director, when asked at a briefing Tuesday if the unusually cold weather in Florida recently posed a risk to the Space Launch System rocket.

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