The aerospace company, owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, was forced to delay the highly anticipated launch of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday because of unfavorable meteorological factors at the Florida launch site.
Launch Delay Reasons
Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground caused early setbacks, then came thick clouds as the narrow time frame for launch closed, leaving managers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Blue Origin and Musk's space company has been intensifying in recent months.
New Launch Window
To relieve traffic in the skies amid the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting commercial rocket liftoffs from the beginning of the week.
After scrubbing the mission, Blue Origin said on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was targeting a new try as soon as midweek within a window of afternoon hours Eastern Standard time.
Mission Objectives
When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will transport the US space agency's two Mars-bound probes to Mars, to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of human exploration.
Blue Origin’s launch will also act as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would represent a technical breakthrough for the firm if successful.
Previous Flight
The rocket's first launch 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, failed to make its touchdown on a ocean-based target in the ocean, and instead was lost during descent.
Recovery Efforts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to recover the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has managed that feat.
Industry Competition
Rival firms of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a private sector space competition that recently escalated, as NASA opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, complaining that SpaceX was lagging behind.
The current administration has seen the administration push the agency to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the Moon in competition against China.
More rivalry between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “give us more choices with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means more ideas in space,” an ex-agency official said. “It can’t be a bad thing to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”
