Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s space company, Blue Origin, is preparing for the first flight of the New Glenn.
With this new 98-meter-high launch vehicle, Blue Origin can launch satellites into orbit around the Earth, among other things.
The first flight of the New Glenn from the Cape Canaveral launch site in Florida could take place on Wednesday starting at 1 a.m. local time. There is a second launch window on Friday. The rocket is named after John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth.
Blue Origin has been flying its New Shepard for several years for space tourists, who can spend a few minutes in space. But the company has not yet flown into orbit around the Earth.
To the Moon and Mars
With the New Glenn, Blue Origin could enter a new market: launching large commercial and military satellites and spacecraft to the moon and Mars. It would then make a big catch-up move with its rival SpaceX, which is owned by another American billionaire, Elon Musk.
The new launch vehicle is partially reusable. The first stage should land on a platform in the sea. The rocket can carry up to 45 tons of cargo into orbit around the Earth and is, therefore, situated between two SpaceX launch vehicles, the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy.
If the first launch succeeds, more flights will follow in 2025. Contracts have already been signed for the launch of missions to Mars and the moon and for internet satellites from companies such as Telesat. The New Glenn will also launch part of Amazon’s planned communications network, the so-called Project Kuiper, which is similar to Musk’s Starlink satellites.
