New Glenn to make another launch attempt early Thursday

Blue Origin announced late on Monday afternoon that it planned to make a second attempt to launch the New Glenn rocket at 1 am ET (06:00 UTC) on Tuesday. But then, a couple of hours later, the company said it would move the launch to Thursday. Although the company provided no information about why it was slipping the launch two more days, it likely involved both technical work after an initial launch scrub on Monday morning and concerns about weather early on Tuesday. In its short update on Monday afternoon, Blue Origin confirmed earlier reporting by Ars that the first launch attempt on Monday morning was scrubbed due to ice buildup on a vent line. "This morning’s scrub was due to ice forming in a purge line on an auxiliary power unit that powers some of our hydraulic systems," the company said. Blue Origin apparently felt good enough about those technical problems to work toward a second launch attempt early on Tuesday morning. Among the challenges for such a 24-hour turnaround included replenishing liquid oxygen, methane, and other commodities needed to fuel the large booster. However, weather at the launch site remained a concern. According to forecasters at the 45th Space Wing at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, there was a 70 percent chance for unfavorable launch conditions. Concerns include cumulus clouds, thick clouds, and liftoff winds. For one or both of these reasons, shortly after 8 pm ET on Monday the company waved off a launch attempt for later that night. This necessitated a 48-hour delay because a Falcon 9 rocket carrying two private lunar landers, one built by Firefly and the other ispace, is due to launch during a similar early morning window on Wednesday. Therefore Blue Origin is now targeting a window from 1 am ET (06:00 UTC) to 4 am ET on Thursday for the much-anticipated debut of the New Glenn rocket. Blue Origin again plans to provide a webcast carrying live coverage of New Glenn's launch attempt on the company's website. Note: This story was updated after Blue Origin's decision to forego a Tuesday morning launch attempt.