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The aerospace company, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, had to delay the eagerly awaited launch of its powerful launch vehicle on Sunday due to unfavorable meteorological factors at Cape Canaveral.

Launch Delay Causes

Precipitation and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, followed by cumulus cloud cover as the narrow time frame for launch ended, leaving managers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.

Rivalry between Bezos' firm and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been heating up in the past few months.

New Launch Window

To relieve airspace congestion during the US federal government shutdown, the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting private space launches from Monday.

Following the cancellation of the mission, the company said on Sunday evening that, in coordination with the regulatory body, it was aiming for a new try as soon as Wednesday within a time slot 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 the Red Planet, to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the eventual hope of human exploration.

Blue Origin’s launch will also act as a key test of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would prove a technical breakthrough for the company if successful.

Earlier Mission

New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January was considered a success, as its payload reached space and completed tests.

But its main rocket section, which was designed as recoverable, failed to make its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and instead was lost during descent.

Recovery Efforts

For this new mission Blue Origin will try once more to land the booster stage.

Thus far, only Musk’s company SpaceX has managed that feat.

Space Race

The competing companies of tycoons Musk and Bezos are locked in a private sector space competition that has grown more intense lately, as the space agency opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, noting that SpaceX was lagging behind.

The current administration has seen the administration push NASA to accelerate its progress to send a crewed mission to the Moon amid a race with China.

Increased competition between SpaceX and Blue Origin could “give us more choices with regard to launch.”

“Additional missions means greater innovation in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It isn't a bad thing to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”