The aerospace company, founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, had to postpone the highly anticipated launch of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday due to unfavorable weather factors at Cape Canaveral.
Launch Delay Causes
Precipitation and a ground system issue led to initial delays, followed by thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, leaving mission controllers to reschedule the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Competition between Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been intensifying in the past few months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To ease traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is limiting commercial rocket liftoffs starting the beginning of the week.
After scrubbing the mission, the company said on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as soon as Wednesday within a window of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.
Launch Goals
When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will transport NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to study the planet’s climate history with the long-term goal of human exploration.
Blue Origin’s launch will also serve as a key test of its ability to perform reusable rocket landing, which would prove a major advancement for the company if successful.
Previous Flight
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in the start of the year was marked as a achievement, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed tests.
But its main rocket section, which was meant to be recoverable, failed to make its landing on a platform in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during the return phase.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will try once more to recover the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has managed that feat.
Space Race
The competing companies of tycoons Musk and Bezos are locked in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, as the space agency opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, complaining that one company was falling behind schedule.
The current administration has seen the administration push NASA to accelerate its progress to send a crewed mission to the lunar surface in competition against China.
Increased competition between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “expand our options with regard to launch.”
“More launches means greater innovation in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It can’t be a negative to have the competitor, even trailing behind.”
