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The aerospace company, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to postpone the eagerly awaited liftoff of its New Glenn rocket on the weekend because of adverse weather conditions at Cape Canaveral.

Mission Postponement Reasons

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

Competition between Blue Origin and Musk's space company has been intensifying in recent months.

Rescheduled Attempt

To relieve traffic in the skies amid the government funding gap, the aviation regulator is limiting private space launches from Monday.

Following the cancellation of the mission, Blue Origin said late Sunday that, in coordination with the FAA, it was targeting a new try as soon as midweek within a window of afternoon hours EST.

Mission Objectives

When it eventually launches, the 98-meter New Glenn rocket will carry the US space agency's two Mars-bound probes to Mars, to study the Martian atmospheric past with the long-term goal of sending people there.

The mission will also serve as a crucial trial of whether it can achieve reusable rocket landing, which would prove a technical breakthrough for the company if successful.

Earlier Mission

The rocket's first launch in the start of the year was considered a achievement, as its payload reached space and completed experiments.

But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be recoverable, did not stick its touchdown on a platform in the ocean, and instead was lost during descent.

Landing Attempts

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

Thus far, only SpaceX has achieved that feat.

Industry Competition

Rival firms of billionaires Musk and Bezos are engaged in a commercial space race that recently escalated, as the space agency opened up proposals for its planned moon mission, complaining that SpaceX was falling behind schedule.

Donald Trump’s second term has involved the government pile pressure on the agency to accelerate its timeline to launch astronauts to the Moon in competition against the Asian nation.

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

“Additional missions means greater innovation in space,” a former NASA chief technologist said. “It isn't a negative to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”