🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, announced in 2016, is set to debut this week, no earlier than January 8 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, according to the launch site SpaceFlight Now.
After years of development and testing, including a successful hot-fire test of its first stage on December 27, New Glenn is finally prepared for its inaugural flight.
If successful, the New Glenn could put Blue Origin at the forefront of the private sector space race—sparking even more fierce competition between the billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, the world's two richest men, who own companies vying for the lead.
Newsweek contacted Blue Origin via email for an update on the launch schedule and further comment.
Why This Matters
New Glenn's debut marks a significant challenge to Elon Musk's dominance in the reusable rocket market with SpaceX. SpaceX's Falcon 9 has become the industry standard, achieving 132 launches in 2024 alone and boasting a 99 percent success rate.
However, New Glenn's larger payload capacity and advanced features could disrupt the status quo, potentially dividing the lucrative commercial launch market.
The competition extends beyond rockets. Blue Origin's New Glenn will play a pivotal role in Amazon's Project Kuiper, a satellite internet service poised to compete with SpaceX's Starlink. Success in both markets could redefine the global space industry and accelerate advancements in reusable launch technology.
What to Know
The test flight is scheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, January 8, 2025, though Blue Origin has not announced an exact time.
The rocket will lift off from Space Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
New Glenn will carry the Blue Ring Pathfinder, a 20-ton dummy payload that simulates future customer payloads. The Pathfinder includes communication systems, power units, and flight computers to validate the rocket's performance. This is approximately half of New Glenn's maximum payload capacity of 45 tons to low Earth orbit.
The first flight is expected to last about six hours, testing both the rocket's functionality and its ability to deploy payloads.
Blue Origin aims to recover the rocket's first stage by landing it on the drone ship Jacklyn, stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. This test will demonstrate the reusability of New Glenn, a key feature for reducing launch costs.
How Does New Glenn Compare to Falcon 9?
At 320 feet tall, New Glenn surpasses Falcon 9's 230-feet height by almost a third. It can carry more weight too—nearly doubling Falcon 9's 23 ton payload to 45 tons.
Designed for a minimum of 25 missions, New Glenn aims to reduce launch costs significantly by landing its first stage on a sea-based platform, similar to SpaceX's approach. This is marginally more than Flacon 9's 24 mission reuse rate.
However, Falcon 9's reliability, proven track record for success and reusability set a high bar for New Glenn to meet. With hundreds of launches under its belt already, SpaceX's Falcon 9 may remain the rocket of choice for some time to come.
What People Are Saying
Jarrett Jones, SVP of New Glenn, said in a statement following the successful hotfire test on December 27: "This is a monumental milestone and a glimpse of what's just around the corner for New Glenn's first launch. Today's success proves that our rigorous approach to testing—combined with our incredible tooling and design engineering—is working as intended."
Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp expressed enthusiasm on X (formerly Twitter): "Well, all we have left to do is mate our encapsulated payload...and then LAUNCH!"
Bezos himself chimed in on X: "Next stop launch."
Musk remained cordial in his response to Bezos' post: "Godspeed!"
Ahn Hyung-jun, head of the space public team at the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STEPI), told ChosunBiz: "For a while, there were no challengers to SpaceX, but now with the arrival of New Glenn, I believe it will provide competition to SpaceX, even though gaps may still exist. SpaceX and Blue Origin had been in a lull after a previous bout of rivalry over space tourism, but the competitive landscape is becoming interesting again concerning commercial launch vehicles."
What Happens Next
If successful, New Glenn will begin commercial operations, supporting missions like Amazon's Project Kuiper.
The rocket's debut could intensify competition with SpaceX, pushing innovation in reusable launch technology.
SpaceX and Blue Origin won't be in space alone, however, with countries like South Korea and China, as well as other companies, vying for top spots in a new space race.
Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about Blue Origin? Let us know via science@newsweek.com.
Update 1/6/25, 8:06 a.m. ET: The article was updated with a comment from Elon Musk.
About the writer
Tom Howarth is a Newsweek reporter based in Bristol, U.K. His focus is reporting on nature and science. He covers ... Read more