Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos nearly 25 years ago, is poised to make its most defining moment yet with the launch of its New Glenn rocket into orbit. The company has announced a live stream of the mission on various platforms, including X, Blue Origin’s YouTube channel, and its website.
The New Glenn rocket stands over 320 feet tall and packs more than twice the power of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. It is designed to carry satellites to space and is categorized as a heavy-lift launch vehicle. The uncrewed mission will test demonstration technology called the Blue Ring Pathfinder.
For the first time, Blue Origin will attempt to land its rocket booster after launch on a seafaring recovery platform named Jacklyn. If successful, this feat could position Blue Origin to compete with SpaceX in the commercial launch sector.
During the six-hour mission, the New Glenn’s upper portion carrying the Blue Ring Pathfinder experiment will propel itself towards orbit. The vehicle is expected to reach speeds of over 17,500 miles per hour. However, success is not guaranteed, and the company may need to implement a self-destruct feature in case of mission-ending failure.
Industry analysts say that if successful, the New Glenn launch could make a big splash in the launch market and fill the role of being a reliable launch provider for the industry.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/11/science/new-glenn-launch-blue-origin/index.html