Aviation Week reports, “Blue Origin says initial data suggests one of two BE-3U upper-stage engines did not deliver sufficient thrust to dispatch the AST SpaceMobile BlueBird 7 satellite to its intended orbit. The power issue occurred on the GS2 upper stage’s second burn, Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp said April 20. The issue has temporarily sidelined New Glenn as the company assesses what caused the malfunction.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
Tag: New Glenn
New Glenn Mission Falls Short, Raising Questions for NASA’s Artemis Plans
The New York Times reports, “A rocket built by Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space company appeared to launch perfectly on Sunday, its booster even landing successfully on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean. A few hours later, however, it became clear that all had not gone well. The massive New Glenn rocket had failed in its primary task: putting a commercial satellite into the proper orbit. This is a setback not only for Blue Origin, but also possibly NASA. Although the space agency played no role in Sunday’s mission, it is counting on Blue Origin to support the Artemis moon program.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)
New Glenn Booster Completes Hot Fire as Blue Origin Eyes Sunday Launch
Spaceflight Now reports, “Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket roared to life in a critical pre-launch demonstration of its main engines Thursday, less than an hour after the Sun crested over the horizon in Florida. The seven BE-4 engines fired for about 20 seconds, at 7:45 a.m. EDT (1145 UTC). Engineers will now pore through the data and if everything looks good, the launch with AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird-7 satellite could take place as soon as Sunday, April 19.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Blue Origin Set to Launch New Glenn Following Weekend Weather Delay
Spaceflight Now Update at 10:40 am ET: “NASA scrubbed the launch due to strong solar impacts.”
Spaceflight Now reports Blue Origin was able to secure permission from the Federal Aviation Administration for a daytime launch. According the article, Blue Origin will “take another crack at launching its 98-meter-tall (321 ft) New Glenn rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Wednesday, Nov. 12.” An 87-minute launch window “opens at 2:50 p.m. EST (1950 UTC) on Wednesday.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Video
Watch Launch Live
Spaceflight Now
Blue Origin Successfully Test-Fires New Glenn Rocket Engines at Cape Canaveral
Ars Technica reports, “The road to the second flight of Blue Origin’s heavy-lifting New Glenn rocket got a lot clearer Thursday night with a success test-firing of the launcher’s seven main engines on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. Standing on a seaside launch pad, the New Glenn rocket ignited its seven BE-4 main engines at 9:59 pm EDT Thursday (01:59 UTC Friday). The engines burned for 38 seconds while the rocket remained firmly on the ground, according to a social media post by Blue Origin.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
Blue Origin to Launch ESCAPADE on Second New Glenn Mission
Space News reports, “Blue Origin has confirmed that a NASA Mars smallsat mission, bumped from the inaugural launch of the New Glenn rocket, will be on the vehicle’s second flight later this year. Blue Origin announced in a social media post July 17 that NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, mission will be the primary payload on the NG-2 launch, the second flight of New Glenn after its inaugural launch in January.”
Full Story (Space News – Subscription Publication)
Second Launch of New Glenn Expected to Take Place Sometime This Fall
Ars Technica reports, “Blue Origin is making steady progress toward the second launch of its New Glenn rocket, which could occur sometime this fall … Two sources say the first stage for this launch is in the final stages of preparation at the company’s facilities in Cape Canaveral, Florida … One source told Ars that a mid- to late-September launch date was ‘realistic,’ but another person said late October or November was more likely … Multiple people have told Ars that the current plan is to launch NASA’s ESCAPADE mission on the second launch of New Glenn. This mission encompasses a pair of small spacecraft that will be sent to Mars to study the red planet’s magnetosphere.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
Second Launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Planned for Late Spring
Space News reports, “Blue Origin expects to attempt its second New Glenn launch in late spring after correcting problems that prevented the booster from landing on the first launch last month. Speaking at the 27th Annual Commercial Space Conference here Feb. 12, Dave Limp, chief executive of Blue Origin, suggested a propulsion issue of some kind caused the loss of the New Glenn booster during its landing attempt on the Jan. 16 NG-1 launch. ‘We had most of the right conditions in the engine but we weren’t able to get everything right to the engine from the tanks,’ he said. ‘We think we understand what the issues are.’
Full Story (Space News)
Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Launches on its Inaugural Flight
Scientific American reports, “A few minutes after 2:00 A.M. EST, a hulking, 320-foot-tall rocket slipped its tethers at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and heaved itself into the sky on a bluish-white pillar of flame, briefly turning night into day along the eastern shore of Florida’s Space Coast. About 8 minutes later, the rocket’s large, first-stage booster failed to stick its landing on a barge in the Atlantic—not exactly the desired outcome, but not unusual for the first attempt to land a booster upright.”
Full Story (Scientific American)
More Info (AIAA Statement)
Video
New Glenn at liftoff during the NG-1 mission, January 16, 2025. (Launch at 04:00:41 mark)
(NASASpaceflight; YouTube)
Blue Origin Scrubs Debut Launch of its New Glenn Rocket
The New York Times reports, “There’s a new rocket that’s never flown waiting on a launchpad in Florida. It’s called New Glenn and it’s going to have to stay there a little longer. On Monday, propellants were loaded into the vehicle and a countdown clock started. Then the clock was reset again. And again. And again.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription publication)
More Info (Spaceflight Now)