The aerospace company, founded by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited liftoff of its powerful launch vehicle on the weekend because of unfavorable weather conditions at the Florida launch site.
Mission Postponement Causes
Rainfall and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, followed by thick clouds as the narrow time frame for launch ended, forcing managers to push back the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Competition between Bezos' firm and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been heating up in recent months.
New Launch Window
To relieve airspace congestion amid the US federal government shutdown, the Federal Aviation Administration is limiting commercial rocket liftoffs starting the beginning of the week.
After scrubbing the launch, the company said on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as soon as Wednesday within a time slot of afternoon hours Eastern Standard time.
Launch Goals
Upon successful liftoff, the 98-meter tall launch vehicle will transport the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to study the planet’s climate history with the eventual hope of sending people there.
Blue Origin’s launch will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would prove a major advancement for the firm if successful.
Previous Flight
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January was considered a success, as its cargo achieved orbit and successfully performed experiments.
But its first-stage booster, which was designed as reusable, did not stick its landing on a platform in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during the return phase.
Landing Attempts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to land the booster stage.
Until now, only Musk’s company SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.
Industry Competition
Rival firms of tycoons Bezos and Musk are locked in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, as NASA began accepting proposals for its planned moon mission, noting that one company was lagging behind.
Donald Trump’s second term has involved the administration push the agency to speed up its progress to launch astronauts to the lunar surface amid a race with the Asian nation.
More rivalry between the two firms could “give us more choices with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means more ideas in orbit,” a former NASA chief technologist said. “It isn't a negative to have Blue Origin, even not in the lead.”
