🔗 Share this article

The aerospace company, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to delay the eagerly awaited liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend due to adverse weather factors at Cape Canaveral.

Launch Delay Reasons

Rainfall and a technical problem on the ground led to early setbacks, then came thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window ended, forcing managers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.

Rivalry between Bezos' firm and Musk's space company has been intensifying in recent months.

Rescheduled Attempt

To ease traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting private space launches from the beginning of the week.

After scrubbing the mission, Blue Origin said late Sunday that, in coordination with the FAA, it was targeting another attempt as early as midweek within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.

Launch Goals

When it eventually launches, the 322-foot tall launch vehicle will transport NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, to study the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of human exploration.

The mission will also serve as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would prove a major advancement for the company if successful.

Earlier Mission

New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January was marked as a achievement, as its cargo reached space and successfully performed experiments.

But its main rocket section, which was meant to be recoverable, did not stick its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during descent.

Recovery Efforts

In its second effort Blue Origin will try once more to recover the booster stage.

Thus far, only SpaceX has achieved that feat.

Industry Competition

The competing companies of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a commercial space race that has grown more intense lately, as the space agency opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, complaining that one company was falling behind schedule.

Donald Trump’s second term has involved the government pile pressure on the agency to accelerate its progress to send a crewed mission to the Moon 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 orbit,” a former NASA chief technologist said. “It isn't a negative to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”