The aerospace company, founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited launch of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday because of adverse weather conditions at Cape Canaveral.
Launch Delay Reasons
Precipitation and a ground system issue led to initial delays, then came cumulus cloud cover as the narrow time frame for launch closed, forcing mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Rivalry between Bezos' firm and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been heating up in recent months.
New Launch Window
To relieve airspace congestion during the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting private space launches starting Monday.
After scrubbing the launch, the company said on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as early as midweek within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm EST.
Mission Objectives
Upon successful liftoff, the 322-foot New Glenn rocket will transport NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to Mars, to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the eventual hope of human exploration.
The mission will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve booster recovery, which would prove a major advancement for the firm if accomplished.
Earlier Mission
The rocket's first launch in the start of the year was considered a success, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed experiments.
But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be reusable, did not stick its touchdown on a ocean-based target in the ocean, and instead was lost during descent.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will make another attempt to recover the booster stage.
Thus far, only SpaceX has managed that feat.
Space Race
The competing companies of tycoons Bezos and Musk 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 falling behind schedule.
The current administration has seen the administration push NASA to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the lunar surface amid a race with China.
Increased competition between the two firms could “give us more choices with regard to launch.”
“More launches means more ideas in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It can’t be a bad thing to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”
