Blue Origin is stepping into the heavy lift launch market. Their new rocket, New Glenn, is made to compete with United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket and SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy. Just like the Falcon 9, New Glenn is a single stick rocket. It is designed to have a reusable first stage booster.
A lot is riding on Blue Origin for the success of New Glenn’s first launch. The main goal is to get off the pad safely. They also plan to recover the booster out in the Atlantic Ocean. Blue Origin’s CEO, Dave Limp, says that this recovery is just icing on the cake. They want to prove that the rocket is good for many important missions ahead. This includes future Mars missions and certification for National Security flights.

What is New Glenn?
New Glenn is a two-stage rocket. It stands about 98 meters tall, which is over 320 feet. The rocket has a payload fairing that is 7 meters wide, nearly 23 feet. The rocket is named after John Glenn, one of the Mercury Seven astronauts. He was the first American to orbit the Earth back in 1962.
Before his death, Glenn congratulated Jeff Bezos on his award and thanked him for naming the rocket after him. He wrote about a future where people would board spacecraft like they do with jetliners. He believed that this would happen because of the work done by people like Bezos.
Rocket Recovery and Landing
New Glenn’s first stage booster is designed to land on a barge in the ocean. Blue Origin has its own landing platform vessel named Jacine, after Jeff Bezos’s mother. The barge is about 200 feet in diameter. This is the same size as the landing zone for the smaller New Shepard rocket.
During its first launch, Blue Origin plans to land the booster on this barge. They know they might not get it right on the first try. After a successful landing, a robot called the Recovery Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROVE) will connect to the booster. This robot provides power and communication links. It is about 14 feet tall and takes up space similar to a Ford F-150 truck.
Powering the New Glenn
The first stage of New Glenn is powered by seven BE-4 engines. These engines are made by Blue Origin and are also used for the United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket. Each BE-4 engine provides 550,000 pounds of thrust at sea level. Together, they produce nearly 3.9 million pounds of thrust. This is more than double the power of the Falcon 9 rocket but less than the Falcon Heavy’s 5.1 million pounds.
Blue Origin tested the engines individually in Texas. They also used NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. The BE-4 engines were tested for 13 seconds at full thrust during a static fire test on December 27. This was the first time all seven engines ignited together.
Stage Separation and Upper Stage
About three minutes after liftoff, the seven engines will power down before stage separation. The upper stage is powered by two BE-3U engines. These are modified from the BE-3 engines used on New Shepard. They are designed for space flight and produce 160,000 pounds of thrust each.
The second stage of New Glenn is 23.4 meters long, which is about 76.9 feet. This stage is currently not reusable, but Blue Origin has plans for a reusable upper stage in the future. They submitted a patent for this design, which includes an Aeros Spike engine for propulsion.
Payload Fairing and Mission Control
At the top of New Glenn are the payload fairings, which protect the payload during launch. These fairings are 21.9 meters tall and 7 meters wide. They are made of a carbon composite material and separate at about 400,000 feet in altitude.
Blue Origin aims to conduct around 12 missions per year with New Glenn. They plan to launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The New Glenn mission control is located near the Kennedy Space Center. Their future missions include launching satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper and other important space missions.
Future Plans
The first missions of New Glenn will help certify the rocket for National Security space launch contracts. Blue Origin has received a launch license from the FAA that allows them to conduct operations at their launch site for the next five years.
In summary, Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket represents a significant step in heavy lift capabilities. With its reusable first stage, powerful engines, and ambitious mission goals, it aims to play a crucial role in future space exploration and national security missions.