Jeff Bezos’ aerospace company, Blue Origin, postponed the highly anticipated launch of its New Glenn rocket on Monday after encountering “a few anomalies” during the final moments of the mission countdown.
The inaugural flight, intended to propel the 30-story rocket into orbit, has been delayed by at least a day, with further postponements likely as engineers investigate the issue.
The New Glenn rocket, partially reusable and fueled by methane and liquid oxygen, was poised for liftoff at Blue Origin’s launchpad in Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Initially scheduled for 1:00 a.m. ET (0600 GMT), the launch time was repeatedly pushed back during the countdown, nearing the end of its launch window at 4:00 a.m.
In a statement, Blue Origin said, “We’re standing down on today’s launch attempt to troubleshoot a vehicle subsystem issue that will take us beyond our launch window. We’re reviewing opportunities for our next launch attempt.”
The mission, which marks the culmination of over a decade of development and billions of dollars in investment, is seen as a crucial step for Blue Origin to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX in the satellite launch market.
The company plans to recover New Glenn’s first-stage booster on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean, while the rocket’s second stage continues toward orbit.
Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, acknowledged the challenges of a maiden launch, saying, “Clearly on a first flight, you could have an anomaly at any mission phase, so anything could happen.” He added that the primary focus is on the booster’s safe landing, describing its success as “icing on the cake.”
Secured within the rocket’s payload bay is the prototype of Blue Ring, a maneuverable spacecraft designed for national security and satellite servicing missions. Achieving orbit on the first attempt would be a significant milestone, with Bezos calling it a “great success.”
The New Glenn project has faced repeated delays as Blue Origin struggled to keep pace with SpaceX’s rapid advancements. The Falcon 9, SpaceX’s flagship rocket, has become the industry standard for reusable spaceflight, performing frequent missions.
In late 2023, Bezos accelerated New Glenn’s development, appointing Dave Limp, an Amazon veteran, as CEO to inject a sense of urgency into the project. New Glenn boasts twice the power of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and has secured launch contracts worth billions of dollars.
