Blue Origin plans to launch New Glenn again this year after explosion

Blue Origin is readying to alert its New Glenn rocket again successful 2026 contempt past week’s monolithic explosion, according to CEO Dave Limp.

Limp said Monday that much of the launchpad’s infrastructure was successful “good shape” than expected pursuing the explosion, which happened during investigating astatine the company’s tract successful Cape Canaveral, Florida. Limp besides said that different antecedently flown New Glenn rocket booster that was astatine the motorboat complex, on with 3 of the rocket’s precocious stages, “also look good.”

“We volition alert again earlier the extremity of this year,” helium said.

It’s an assertive timeline for returning to formation aft what was the largest and astir disposable nonaccomplishment of the company’s history. Many radical successful the abstraction manufacture assumed it would instrumentality Blue Origin astatine slightest until 2027 earlier New Glenn would motorboat again, particularly due to the fact that it seemed similar determination was a batch of harm to the launchpad — the lone 1 Blue Origin has astatine the infinitesimal that tin enactment New Glenn.

Blue Origin has besides not yet said what caused the explosion.

The institution present finds itself successful a unsocial strategical position. While SpaceX recovered successful a substance of months aft 1 of its Falcon 9 rockets blew up connected a launchpad successful 2016, that speedy turnaround was owed to the information that it had a 2nd pad astir acceptable astatine the clip of the mishap. Blue Origin is gathering a 2nd launchpad astatine Cape Canaveral, but that task is in precise aboriginal stages.

NASA is relying connected Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket for its planned bid of Artemis missions to the moon. Jeff Bezos’ spaceflight institution had wholly shifted absorption to this programme successful bid to enactment those missions, announcing successful January that it was pausing abstraction tourism flights connected the overmuch smaller New Shepard rocket for astatine slightest 2 years.

New Glenn’s archetypal motorboat took spot successful January 2025, aft spending galore years successful improvement — and suffering a fig of delays. That inaugural motorboat was mostly successful, with the precocious signifier reaching orbit connected its archetypal attempt, but the booster signifier exploded connected its mode backmost to Earth. The 2nd New Glenn launch, successful November, saw Blue Origin put a brace of Mars-bound spacecraft into space and onshore its archetypal booster signifier connected a drone ship. The institution flew that booster signifier again successful April connected New Glenn’s 3rd mission, but the precocious signifier suffered a nonaccomplishment and the lawsuit payload — an AST SpaceMobile outer — was lost.

Blue Origin was preparing to motorboat a batch of satellites for Bezos’ different company, Amazon, connected the 4th launch. The spaceflight institution had not enactment those satellites connected committee yet, truthful they weren’t destroyed successful the explosion.

While determination was immoderate speculation that Blue Origin mightiness proceed straight to the larger and much almighty New Glenn variant erstwhile it returned to flight, Limp changeable down that thought connected Monday. The institution will, however, alteration however it carries its rockets to the launchpad, and however it stands them up. Previously, Blue Origin utilized what it called a “transporter-erector,” which could grip some tasks. Limp didn’t specify what Blue Origin’s caller solution volition look like.