The aerospace company, owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on Sunday because of adverse meteorological conditions at the Florida launch site.
Launch Delay Reasons
Precipitation and a technical problem on the ground led to early setbacks, then came thick clouds as the 88-minute launch window closed, forcing managers to reschedule the rocket’s planned second mission.
Competition between Bezos' firm and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been intensifying in recent months.
Rescheduled Attempt
To relieve airspace congestion during the government funding gap, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting private space launches starting the beginning of the week.
Following the cancellation of the mission, the company announced on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was aiming for a new try as early as midweek within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.
Mission Objectives
Upon successful liftoff, the 322-foot tall launch vehicle will carry NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to Mars, in an effort to study the planet’s climate history with the eventual hope of sending people there.
The mission will also serve as a key test of its ability to perform booster recovery, which would represent a technical breakthrough for the firm if accomplished.
Earlier Mission
The rocket's first launch in January was considered a success, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed experiments.
But its first-stage booster, which was designed as reusable, did not stick its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during descent.
Landing Attempts
For this new mission the launch provider will make another attempt to recover the first stage.
Thus far, only SpaceX has managed that feat.
Industry Competition
The competing companies 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 planned moon mission, noting that SpaceX was lagging behind.
The current administration has involved the administration push NASA to accelerate its progress to launch astronauts to the Moon amid a race with China.
Increased competition between the two firms could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”
“More launches means more ideas in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It isn't a negative to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”
