Blue Origin, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited launch of its New Glenn rocket on Sunday because of unfavorable meteorological factors at Cape Canaveral.
Mission Postponement Reasons
Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground caused initial delays, then came thick clouds as the narrow time frame for launch ended, forcing mission controllers to push back the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Rivalry between Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been intensifying in recent months.
New Launch Window
To relieve airspace congestion during the US federal government shutdown, the aviation regulator is restricting private space launches starting Monday.
After scrubbing the launch, Blue Origin announced on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was targeting a new try as soon as midweek within a window of afternoon hours EST.
Launch Goals
Upon successful liftoff, the 322-foot New Glenn rocket will transport NASA’s two Mars-bound probes to the Red Planet, to study the planet’s climate history with the long-term goal of sending people there.
The mission will also act as a crucial trial of its ability to perform booster recovery, which would prove a major advancement for the company if successful.
Previous Flight
The rocket's first launch in the start of the year was marked as a achievement, as its cargo reached space and successfully performed tests.
But its main rocket section, which was designed as recoverable, did not stick its landing on a ocean-based target in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during the return phase.
Recovery Efforts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to recover the booster stage.
Thus far, only SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.
Space Race
Rival firms of tycoons Bezos and Musk are locked in a private sector space competition that recently escalated, as NASA began accepting bids for its lunar exploration program, noting that one company was lagging behind.
The current administration has involved the administration pile pressure on the agency to accelerate its timeline to send a crewed mission to the Moon in competition against the Asian nation.
Increased competition between the two firms could “give us more choices with regard to launch.”
“More launches means greater innovation in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It can’t be a negative to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”
