The aerospace company, founded by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to delay the highly anticipated liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend because of adverse meteorological factors at the Florida launch site.
Mission Postponement Causes
Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground caused initial delays, followed by thick clouds as the narrow time frame for launch closed, forcing managers to reschedule the vehicle's upcoming flight.
Rivalry between Blue Origin and Musk's space company has been heating up in recent months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To relieve traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is limiting private space launches starting Monday.
After scrubbing the launch, the company announced on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was targeting a new try as early as Wednesday within a window of afternoon hours EST.
Launch Goals
When it eventually launches, the 322-foot New Glenn rocket will carry the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to study the planet’s climate history with the eventual hope of sending people there.
Blue Origin’s launch will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would represent a technical breakthrough for the company if successful.
Previous Flight
The rocket's first launch in the start of the year was considered a achievement, as its cargo reached space and successfully performed tests.
But its first-stage booster, which was designed as recoverable, failed to make its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during the return phase.
Recovery Efforts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to recover the first stage.
Until now, only SpaceX has managed that accomplishment.
Industry Competition
Rival firms of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, as NASA began accepting proposals for its lunar exploration program, complaining that SpaceX was lagging behind.
The current administration has seen the government pile pressure on NASA 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.”
“Additional missions means more ideas in orbit,” a former NASA chief technologist stated. “It isn't a negative to have the competitor, even trailing behind.”
