Blue Origin, the rocket company founded by Jeff Bezos in 2000, has postponed the launch of its New Glenn rocket for the second time. The initial attempt was called off due to a technical issue that engineers needed to address. The company later announced a new launch window opening at 1 a.m. ET on Tuesday, but ultimately decided to reschedule the launch for Thursday, January 16.
The technical problem that led to the scrub was identified as ice forming in a purge line on an auxiliary power unit that powers some of the hydraulic systems. This issue was not fully disclosed during the previous launch attempt, where engineers were dealing with 'anomalies' that needed troubleshooting before proceeding with the launch.
Blue Origin's vice president of in-space systems, Ariane Cornell, stated that the decision to stand down from the launch was made to address the vehicle subsystem issue effectively. Despite efforts to resolve the problems, time ran out before the launch window closed at 4 a.m. ET.
A successful inaugural liftoff of the New Glenn rocket is crucial for Blue Origin as it aims to gather valuable data from this flight and establish a strong presence in the global launch industry. New Glenn is designed to send satellites into orbit, positioning Blue Origin to compete with SpaceX in the launch market.
The delay in the New Glenn launch comes amidst a busy week for spaceflight activities. SpaceX is preparing for the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket carrying two lunar landers from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, adjacent to Cape Canaveral. Additionally, SpaceX is scheduled to conduct the seventh test flight of its Starship rocket on Wednesday.
