Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket completes last take a look at for its first flight

Blue Origin’s New Glenn heavy-lift launch automobile is now prepared for its first flight. The corporate has performed — and successfully completed — a moist costume rehearsal or a full run-through of the rocket’s launch countdown. As The New York Times reviews, Blue Origin needed to try the countdown a number of occasions over a couple of hours, however the firm managed to ignite and hearth New Glenn’s seven engines for twenty-four seconds in the long run.

New Glenn’s tanks have been stuffed with gas and the rocket was fitted with a forty five,000-pound payload mass simulator as if it actually was heading to area. Blue Origin says that is the primary time it operated the automobile as an built-in system, with New Glenn SVP Jarrett Jones calling the take a look at’s completion a “monumental milestone.” The Federal Aviation Administration has additionally granted the corporate a launch license for New Glenn, which suggests it is now actually able to go.

The corporate describes New Glenn as a “large, reusable rocket constructed for larger issues.” It additionally stated that it was “engineered with the security and redundancy required to fly people,” although its inaugural flight might be uncrewed. Its first flight was presupposed to take place in October carrying two NASA satellites heading to Mars, nevertheless it needed to be scrapped as a result of the rocket wasn’t prepared by then. New Glenn will now fly for the primary time with the corporate’s Blue Ring Pathfinder, a part of its Blue Ring platform that can provide spacecraft providers to purchasers just like the Pentagon, as a substitute. Whereas Blue Origin did not announce a brand new launch date for the rocket, it is anticipated to be the corporate’s first flight for 2025 and could take place as early as January 6.