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Blue Origin, owned by entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, was forced to delay the highly anticipated launch of its New Glenn rocket on Sunday due to adverse weather conditions at the Florida launch site.

Launch Delay Causes

Precipitation and a ground system issue led to initial delays, then came cumulus cloud cover as the narrow time frame for launch ended, forcing managers to push back the rocket’s planned second mission.

Competition between Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been heating up in recent months.

Rescheduled Attempt

To ease airspace congestion amid the US federal government shutdown, the aviation regulator is restricting commercial rocket liftoffs from Monday.

After scrubbing the launch, Blue Origin said on Sunday evening that, working alongside the FAA, it was aiming for a new try as soon as Wednesday within a window of afternoon hours EST.

Mission Objectives

Upon successful liftoff, the 98-meter tall launch vehicle will transport NASA’s two Mars-bound probes to Mars, in an effort to examine the planet’s climate history with the long-term goal of sending people there.

Blue Origin’s launch 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 accomplished.

Earlier Mission

The rocket's first launch in January was considered a achievement, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed tests.

But its main rocket section, which was meant to be reusable, did not stick its landing on a ocean-based target in the Atlantic, and ended up destroyed during descent.

Landing Attempts

In its second effort the launch provider will make another attempt to land the first stage.

Until now, only Musk’s company SpaceX has achieved that accomplishment.

Space Race

Rival firms of tycoons Musk and Bezos are engaged in a private sector space competition that recently escalated, as NASA opened up bids for its lunar exploration program, noting that one company was lagging behind.

Donald Trump’s second term has seen the administration pile pressure on the agency to accelerate its timeline to send a crewed mission to the Moon in competition against China.

More rivalry between the two firms could “expand our options with regard to liftoff.”

“More launches means more ideas in space,” an ex-agency official stated. “It can’t be a bad thing to have Blue Origin, even trailing behind.”