For some reason, NASA is treating Orion’s heat shield problems as a secret | Space

This capability makes the arc jet test facility unique in the world, but it still can’t fully replicate the stresses a spacecraft’s heat shield undergoes during reentry. There are some things that are just unknowable until you fly, said Victor Glover, pilot of the Artemis II mission, in an interview with Ars earlier this year.

“What we are doing now is assessing what is the appropriate approach for Artemis II, regarding the heat shield,” Glaze said Monday. “We know what needs to be done for future missions, but the Artemis II heat shield is already built. So how do we assure astronaut safety with Artemis II?”

This will be the second major human spaceflight safety decision NASA will make this year, following the agency’s choice to conclude the first piloted test flight of Boeing’s commercial crew capsule without its astronauts in the cockpit. Instead, the capsule’s two-person crew remained behind at the International Space Station after NASA managers could not get comfortable with malfunctions in Starliner’s propulsion system.

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