Billionaire Jeff Bezos‘s aerospace company Blue Origin scrubbed its New Shepard rocket launch, the first in 15 months, last minute over a ground system issue. The company aims to make the lift-off on Tuesday.
The mission, called NS-24, carrying 33 science and research payloads and other cargo to space was slated for launch as early as 9.30 a.m. EST on December 18 from the company’s West Texas site.
After a one-hour delay due to cold temperatures, the launch was scrubbed, and Blue Origin announced a scrub on X.
“We’re scrubbing #NS24 today due to a ground system issue the team is troubleshooting,” the company said.
“Our next #NS24 launch window opens tomorrow, December 19, at 10:37 AM CST / 16:37 UTC,” it added
The new launch comes after the failure in September 2022, when an uncrewed research mission lifted off from Blue Origin’s launch site in West Texas, and seconds after launch, New Shepard’s reusable first-stage booster experienced a serious problem and crashed.
A probe by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) cited the proximate cause of the mishap as the structural failure of an engine nozzle caused by higher-than-expected engine operating temperatures.
The FAA had instructed Blue Origin to implement 21 corrective actions, including redesigning the engine and nozzle components as well as “organizational changes”.
“Blue Origin must implement all corrective actions that impact public safety and receive a license modification from the FAA that addresses all safety and other applicable regulatory requirements prior to the next New Shepard launch,” the FAA had said in a statement in October.
