Blue Origin, founded by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to delay the highly anticipated launch of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend due to unfavorable weather conditions at Cape Canaveral.
Mission Postponement Causes
Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground led to early setbacks, followed by thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, leaving mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been heating up in recent months.
New Launch Window
To relieve traffic in the skies amid the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is limiting commercial rocket liftoffs starting Monday.
After scrubbing the launch, the company announced late Sunday that, working alongside the regulatory body, it was aiming for another attempt as early as Wednesday within a window of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.
Launch Goals
Upon successful liftoff, the 98-meter tall launch vehicle will carry the US space agency's two Mars-bound probes to Mars, in an effort to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of human exploration.
The mission will also act as a crucial trial of its ability to perform reusable rocket landing, which would prove a technical breakthrough for the firm if successful.
Previous Flight
New Glenn’s inaugural flight in the start of the year was considered a success, as its cargo reached space and completed experiments.
But its main rocket section, which was meant to be recoverable, did not stick its landing on a platform in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during descent.
Recovery Efforts
In its second effort Blue Origin will try once more to land the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has managed that feat.
Space Race
The competing companies of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, 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 involved the administration pile pressure on the agency to accelerate its progress to send a crewed mission to the lunar surface amid a race with the Asian nation.
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 said. “It can’t be a bad thing to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”
