Launch of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket postponed due to ‘vehicle subsystem issue’

Adam Goldsmith
Live reporter

Just six minutes before Jeff Bezos’ rocket was set to blast into space at 08:15 GMT (03:15 EST), this morning’s launch was called off.

There was confusion here in the newsroom as 10-minute countdowns kept being extended to 35 minutes – as teams on the ground in Florida hurried to get things ready.

Eventually though time ran out, with Blue Origin saying the postponement was down to a “vehicle subsystem issue”.

We don’t yet know when the next launch will be, but Bezos’ team says they’ll now take a look at opportunities for another attempt.

Called New Glenn after John Glenn – the first American to orbit the earth – this rocket was a big moment for Blue Origin as will be its first launch into orbit, as our science correspondent Pallab Ghosh explains.

When finally launched, the idea is that the rocket booster will detach and land on a platform in the Atlantic where it can then be reused – a manoeuvre mastered by Elon Musk’s Starship programme in October last year.

But after a morning of constant reassessments, Bezos will now have to wait a little longer for his chance to match his rival.