The aerospace company, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to delay the highly anticipated liftoff of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday due to unfavorable weather conditions at Cape Canaveral.
Launch Delay Causes
Precipitation and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, followed by thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, leaving mission controllers to push back the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Competition between Bezos' firm and Musk's space company has been heating up in the past few months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To ease airspace congestion amid the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is restricting private space launches from Monday.
Following the cancellation of the launch, Blue Origin announced on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as early as Wednesday within a window of afternoon hours EST.
Launch Goals
When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will transport the US space agency's two Mars-bound probes to Mars, in an effort to study the planet’s climate history with the long-term goal of sending people there.
The mission will also act as a crucial trial of whether it can achieve booster recovery, which would represent a technical breakthrough for the company if accomplished.
Earlier Mission
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January was considered a success, as its cargo reached space and successfully performed tests.
But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be reusable, did not stick its landing on a platform in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during the return phase.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will try once more to recover the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.
Space Race
Rival firms of billionaires Bezos and Musk are locked in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, as the space agency opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, complaining that SpaceX was lagging behind.
The current administration has seen the government pile pressure on the agency to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the Moon in competition against the Asian nation.
Increased competition between the two firms could “give us more choices with regard to launch.”
“More launches means more ideas in orbit,” a former NASA chief technologist stated. “It can’t be a negative to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”
