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Blue Origin, founded by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on Sunday due to adverse weather factors at the Florida launch site.

Mission Postponement Causes

Rainfall and a ground system issue caused early setbacks, then came cumulus cloud cover as the 88-minute launch window closed, leaving mission controllers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.

Competition between Bezos' firm and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been intensifying in recent months.

New Launch Window

To relieve traffic in the skies during the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is restricting commercial rocket liftoffs from Monday.

Following the cancellation of the launch, Blue Origin said on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was targeting another attempt as early as Wednesday within a time slot of 2.50pm to 4.17pm Eastern Standard time.

Launch Goals

When it eventually launches, the 322-foot New Glenn rocket will transport NASA’s Escapade twin spacecraft to the Red Planet, in an effort to examine the Martian atmospheric past with the eventual hope of sending people there.

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 firm if accomplished.

Earlier Mission

New Glenn’s inaugural flight in the start of the year was considered a achievement, as its cargo achieved orbit and completed experiments.

But its main rocket section, which was designed as recoverable, did not stick its touchdown on a ocean-based target in the ocean, and ended up destroyed during the return phase.

Recovery Efforts

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

Thus far, only SpaceX has managed that accomplishment.

Space Race

The competing companies of billionaires Bezos and Musk are engaged in a private sector space competition that recently escalated, as the space agency began accepting bids for its lunar exploration program, noting that one company was falling behind schedule.

The current administration has involved the government push NASA to speed up its timeline to launch astronauts to the lunar surface amid a race with the Asian nation.

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

“Additional missions means greater innovation in space,” a former NASA chief technologist stated. “It can’t be a negative to have the competitor, even not in the lead.”