The aerospace company, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to postpone the highly anticipated launch of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday because of adverse weather conditions at the Florida launch site.
Mission Postponement Causes
Precipitation and a ground system issue led to initial delays, then came thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window closed, leaving managers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Rivalry between Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been intensifying in the past few months.
New Launch Window
To relieve traffic in the skies during the US federal government shutdown, the aviation regulator is restricting private space launches from Monday.
Following the cancellation of the launch, the company said late Sunday that, in coordination with the FAA, it was aiming for another attempt as early as midweek within a window of afternoon hours EST.
Mission Objectives
Upon successful liftoff, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will transport the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the eventual hope of human exploration.
The mission 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.
Earlier Mission
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in the start of the year was marked as a success, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed experiments.
But its first-stage booster, which was designed as reusable, did not stick its touchdown on a ocean-based target in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during descent.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will try once more to recover the first stage.
Until now, only Musk’s company SpaceX has managed that feat.
Space Race
Rival firms of tycoons Bezos and Musk are locked in a private sector space competition that recently escalated, as the space agency began accepting bids for its planned moon mission, noting that SpaceX was falling behind schedule.
The current administration has involved the administration push NASA to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the lunar surface amid a race with the Asian nation.
Increased competition between the two firms could “give us more choices with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means greater innovation in orbit,” an ex-agency official said. “It can’t be a negative to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”
