Blue Origin, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the highly anticipated liftoff of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday because of unfavorable meteorological conditions at Cape Canaveral.
Mission Postponement Causes
Precipitation and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, then came thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, forcing mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Bezos' firm and Musk's space company has been heating up in the past few months.
New Launch Window
To ease airspace congestion amid the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting commercial rocket liftoffs starting the beginning of the week.
Following the cancellation of the mission, Blue Origin announced on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was targeting a new try as early as midweek within a window of afternoon hours EST.
Launch Goals
When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will carry the US space agency's Escapade twin spacecraft to Mars, to study 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 major advancement for the company if successful.
Earlier Mission
The rocket's first launch in January was considered a achievement, as its cargo achieved orbit and completed tests.
But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be reusable, failed to make its landing on a platform in the ocean, and instead was lost during descent.
Landing Attempts
For this new mission Blue Origin will try once more to land the first stage.
Thus far, only Musk’s company SpaceX has managed that feat.
Space Race
The competing companies of billionaires Bezos and Musk are engaged in a commercial space race that has grown more intense lately, as the space agency began accepting proposals for its planned moon mission, complaining that SpaceX was falling behind schedule.
The current administration has involved the government push NASA to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the Moon amid a race with China.
Increased competition between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “give us more choices with regard to launch.”
“More launches means more ideas in space,” a former NASA chief technologist said. “It can’t be a bad thing to have the competitor, even trailing behind.”
