The aerospace company, founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, had to delay the highly anticipated launch of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend because of adverse meteorological conditions at Cape Canaveral.
Launch Delay Reasons
Precipitation and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, followed by thick clouds as the narrow time frame for launch ended, leaving mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Rivalry between Bezos' firm and Musk's space company has been heating up in recent months.
New Launch Window
To ease traffic in the skies during the US federal government shutdown, the aviation regulator is limiting private space launches starting the beginning of the week.
After scrubbing the mission, the company announced late Sunday that, in coordination with the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as early as midweek within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm EST.
Launch Goals
Upon successful liftoff, the 98-meter tall launch vehicle will carry the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to Mars, in an effort to study the Martian atmospheric past with the eventual hope of sending people there.
Blue Origin’s launch will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve 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 considered a success, as its cargo reached space and completed tests.
But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be recoverable, failed to make its landing on a platform in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during the return phase.
Recovery Efforts
For this new mission Blue Origin will make another attempt to land the first stage.
Thus far, only Musk’s company SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.
Space Race
The competing companies of tycoons Bezos and Musk are engaged in a commercial space race that recently escalated, as the space agency began accepting bids for its lunar exploration program, complaining that one company was falling behind schedule.
Donald Trump’s second term has seen the administration push NASA to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the lunar surface amid a race with China.
More rivalry between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”
“Additional missions means more ideas in orbit,” a former NASA chief technologist stated. “It isn't a bad thing to have the competitor, even trailing behind.”
