The aerospace company, owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, had to delay the highly anticipated liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend because of unfavorable meteorological factors at the Florida launch site.
Launch Delay Causes
Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground caused early setbacks, followed by thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, forcing managers to reschedule the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Blue Origin and Musk's space company has been heating up in recent months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To ease traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is limiting commercial rocket liftoffs from Monday.
Following the cancellation of the mission, Blue Origin said on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was aiming for another attempt as early as Wednesday 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 the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of sending people there.
The mission will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would represent a major advancement for the company if successful.
Earlier Mission
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in the start of the year was considered a success, as its payload reached space and completed experiments.
But its main rocket section, which was meant to be recoverable, did not stick its touchdown on a platform 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.
Thus far, 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 recently escalated, as NASA began accepting proposals for its planned moon mission, 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 timeline to send a crewed mission to the lunar surface in competition against China.
Increased competition between the two firms could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”
“Additional missions means greater innovation in orbit,” an ex-agency official said. “It isn't a bad thing to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”
