Blue origin’s new glenn rocket explosion during pre-launch test

Fire erupts at the base of the New Glenn rocket as a static test firing goes horribly wrong. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now.

#New Glenn

On the evening of Thursday, May 28, 2026, Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket violently exploded on the launch pad at Complex 36 of the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida

The incident occurred during a static fire test of the engines, used to verify the operation of the boosters before the actual flight.

The accident represents a major setback for the company founded by Jeff Bezos, which had hoped to launch satellites in the first days of June.

The rocket, which was positioned on the pad, suddenly turned into a huge fireball around 9 PM (Brasilia time).

The flames engulfed the entire structure and parts of the launch pad.

Fortunately, all personnel present were accounted for and no one was injured.

Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, quickly commented on social media: “All team members are safe and well.

It’s too early to know the exact cause, but we’re already working to find out.

It was a very difficult day, but we will rebuild what is necessary and get back to flying.

It’s worth it.”

The Amazon Leo satellites, which were to be launched by this rocket, had not yet been transported to the launch pad.

They would have been the first of a series of 24 launches contracted by Bezos’ company to place a constellation of satellites into orbit.

Since the accident occurred during a test that did not require a specific license from the FAA (the American aviation agency), there will be no new formal investigation by the agency.

The FAA only confirmed that the test did not affect air traffic.

This was not the first recent problem with the New Glenn.

A few days earlier, Blue Origin had received authorization to resume launches after a failure in the previous flight (NG-3), when the second stage presented a problem that prevented the satellite from being placed in the correct orbit.

The company had already identified nine corrective actions to prevent the error from recurring.

Now, with the explosion on the platform, it will be necessary to assess the damage to the lightning protection tower and the rocket’s transport equipment before resuming any operations.

The impact could extend beyond Blue Origin.

The BE-4 engines, which use methane as fuel, are also used in the first stage of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rockets.

Any problems identified in these engines could delay other important projects in the American space industry.

NASA is closely monitoring the situation, as it depends on Blue Origin for several missions of the Artemis program and the future lunar base.

Recently, the agency contracted the company to deliver lunar exploration vehicles using the Blue Moon Mark 1 lander.

Furthermore, the crewed version, Blue Moon Mark 2, was chosen to transport astronauts to the lunar surface in partnership with the Orion spacecraft.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman acknowledged the difficulty of developing heavy rockets: “Spaceflight doesn’t forgive mistakes, and creating new launch capabilities is extremely challenging.

We will support a thorough investigation and assess the impacts on the Artemis and Lunar Base programs.”

Compared to previous incidents at Cape Canaveral, such as the explosion of a SpaceX Falcon 9 in 2016, Blue Origin only has this orbital platform available at the moment.

This means that a return to operations may take longer than desired, even if the technical investigation progresses rapidly.

The space sector is experiencing a time of great ambition, with plans for bases on the Moon, missions to Mars, and satellite constellations.

Accidents like this remind everyone that developing cutting-edge technology involves risks and requires perseverance.

Blue Origin, like other companies in the sector, has already demonstrated its ability to recover from previous challenges.

The expectation is that, after a detailed analysis of what happened, the team will be able to correct the problems and move forward with the flight plans.

The path to space remains demanding, but the determination of those who work on it usually overcomes the obstacles.

This explosion will certainly delay schedules, generate additional costs, and require a great deal of engineering work.

However, it also reinforces the importance of rigorous testing and learning from each failure to make space launches safer and more reliable in the future.

The space community is closely following Blue Origin’s next steps.

Published in 05/29/2026 08h50

Portuguese version

Text adapted by AI (Grok) and translated via Google API in the English version. Images from public image libraries or credits in the caption. Information about DOI, author and institution can be found in the body of the article.

Reference article:

{teste}