Space
NASA Delays Blue Origin Mars Mission Until Next Year
- Agency cites costs, technical challenges with October window
- Company to debut New Glenn rocket in November Blue Ring flight
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A Blue Origin LLC mission to send satellites to Mars will be delayed until at least early 2025 over concerns about whether the Jeff Bezos-backed firm would be ready to launch as planned this year.
NASA said Friday that it would forgo an October flight “to avoid significant cost, schedule and technical challenges associated with potentially removing fuel from the spacecraft in the event of a launch delay.” The agency is assessing other launch opportunities and has discussed with Blue Origin a window no earlier than next spring, NASA said in a statement.