Blue Origin, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to postpone the highly anticipated liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend due to unfavorable weather conditions at the Florida launch site.
Mission Postponement Reasons
Rainfall and a ground system issue led to initial delays, followed by cumulus cloud cover as the 88-minute launch window closed, leaving mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Blue Origin and Musk's space company has been heating up in the past few months.
New Launch Window
To relieve airspace congestion amid the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is limiting private space launches from the beginning of the week.
Following the cancellation of the mission, the company announced late Sunday that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was targeting a new try as early as Wednesday within a window of afternoon hours Eastern Standard time.
Mission Objectives
When it eventually launches, the 322-foot tall launch vehicle will transport NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to Mars, to study the planet’s climate history with the eventual hope of human exploration.
Blue Origin’s launch will also serve as a crucial trial of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would represent a technical breakthrough for the firm if accomplished.
Previous Flight
The rocket's first launch in the start of the year was marked as a achievement, as its payload reached space and completed tests.
But its main rocket section, which was designed as recoverable, failed to make its touchdown on a platform in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during the return phase.
Landing Attempts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to land the first stage.
Until now, only Musk’s company SpaceX has achieved that feat.
Space Race
Rival firms of billionaires Musk and Bezos are locked in a commercial space race that has grown more intense lately, as NASA began accepting proposals for its lunar exploration program, noting that one company was lagging behind.
Donald Trump’s second term has seen the government pile pressure on the agency to speed up its progress to send a crewed mission to the Moon amid a race with the Asian nation.
Increased competition between the two firms could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means more ideas in space,” an ex-agency official said. “It isn't a negative to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”
