The cancellation came after several resets of the countdown clock and was later blamed on ice forming on an auxiliary power unit that powers some of our hydraulic systems.
New Glenn is Blue Origin’s much-anticipated rival to SpaceX’s payload-carrying launch vehicles, sitting between the Falcon 9 and the larger Falcon Heavy.
In development since 2012, it stands at 98 metres tall, has a wider payload fairing than the Falcon Heavy and can carry 13 metric tons to geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) or 45 metric tons to low Earth orbit (LEO).
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“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 company said on social media.
Blue Origin added that the next launch attempt would be no earlier than Tuesday, but a poor weather forecast could result in that window being missed, too.
When the blast-off finally occurs, New Glenn will carry a prototype version of its Blue Ring spacecraft designed to both transport payloads into orbit and carry out refuelling to other satellites.
“The spacecraft’s ability to manoeuvre to multiple orbits and locations, deploy and host payloads, and perform onboard computing and communications will enable groundbreaking missions for a variety of customers,” said Blue Origin.
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“The multi-mission space mobility platform can deliver and host 3,000 kilograms of payloads across 13 ports to destinations in GEO, cislunar, and interplanetary space.”
New Glenn itself is partially reusable and will attempt to land the first-stage booster on a SpaceX-style drone ship called Jacklyn stationed 1,000km downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.
The news comes days after SpaceX revealed it’s preparing to launch Starship again as soon as Wednesday.
The launch window will open at 4pm local time at the company’s Starbase spaceport in Texas or at 9am Thursday AEDT, while a live feed will be streamed here.
Starship is the collective name for the SpaceX Super Heavy booster rocket and Starship spacecraft, destined to fly humans to Mars one day.
Testing began in April 2023 when the spacecraft failed to reach orbit, but culminated in an incredible “chopstick”-style catch of its Super Heavy booster in October, effectively making it reusable.
A sixth test last month was watched by President-elect Donald Trump.
Adam Thorn
Adam is a journalist who has worked for more than 40 prestigious media brands in the UK and Australia. Since 2005, his varied career has included stints as a reporter, copy editor, feature writer and editor for publications as diverse as Fleet Street newspaper The Sunday Times, fashion bible Jones, media and marketing website Mumbrella as well as lifestyle magazines such as GQ, Woman’s Weekly, Men’s Health and Loaded. He joined Momentum Media in early 2020 and currently writes for Australian Aviation and World of Aviation.
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