The aerospace company, founded by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to postpone the eagerly awaited launch of its New Glenn rocket on Sunday due to unfavorable weather factors at the Florida launch site.
Mission Postponement Causes
Precipitation and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, then came cumulus cloud cover as the narrow time frame for launch closed, forcing mission controllers to push back the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Rivalry between Bezos' firm and Musk's space company has been intensifying in the past few months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To relieve traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is restricting private space launches starting Monday.
Following the cancellation of the mission, Blue Origin announced late Sunday that, in coordination with the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as soon as midweek within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.
Launch Goals
When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will carry NASA’s two Mars-bound probes to the Red Planet, in an effort to study the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of sending people there.
The mission will also serve as a crucial trial of whether it can achieve booster recovery, which would represent a major advancement for the company if successful.
Earlier Mission
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January was considered a achievement, as its payload reached space and successfully performed tests.
But its main rocket section, which was meant to be reusable, did not stick its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during descent.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will make another attempt to land the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.
Space Race
The competing companies of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a commercial space race that recently escalated, as NASA opened up proposals for its planned moon mission, noting that SpaceX was lagging behind.
The current administration has involved the government pile pressure on the agency to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the Moon amid a race with China.
Increased competition between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means greater innovation in space,” a former NASA chief technologist stated. “It can’t be a bad thing to have Blue Origin, even not in the lead.”
