All articles tagged with #new glenn
The FAA has cleared Blue Origin to resume New Glenn launches after investigating NG-3’s mishap, which was caused by a cryogenic leak that froze a hydraulic line and created a thrust anomaly during the second-stage burn. Blue Origin has implemented nine corrective actions and is preparing NG-4, including integrated hotfire testing, with a new launch timeline to be announced.
Blue Origin has been cleared for another New Glenn launch after investigators traced the April 19 anomaly to a cryogenic leak that froze a hydraulic line, causing insufficient thrust on the second stage and placing AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite in an off-nominal, too-low orbit. The FAA grounded the mission pending fixes, the booster Never Tell Me The Odds landed successfully on its first reflight, and Blue Origin says corrective measures are in place as it plans to ramp production to around 60 upper stages by 2028 to boost launch cadence.
Blue Origin has completed the NG-3 investigation into the April 19 New Glenn launch failure and the FAA has approved the report, allowing launches to resume. The direct cause was a cryogenic leak that froze a hydraulic line, causing a thrust anomaly during the second-stage burn. Nine corrective actions were identified and will be verified by the FAA before the next flight. Blue Origin is preparing NG-4, while AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird satellite was the NG-3 payload.
AST SpaceMobile said it may launch some of its direct-to-device satellites on ULA’s Vulcan rocket to broaden its launch options, joining SpaceX and Blue Origin in its plans. The company still targets about 45 satellites in orbit by year’s end, but no Vulcan contract has been announced and Vulcan’s own launch backlog (plus an SRB anomaly investigation) could limit near-term availability; meanwhile, a mid-June Falcon 9 launch for AST’s BlueBirds 8–10 is planned as New Glenn launches remain paused following the recent failure.
Blue Origin's NG-3 mission achieved a successful booster landing, but an upper-stage thrust anomaly prevented the second burn from placing AST SpaceMobile's Bluebird 7 satellite into the planned orbit, leaving the satellite in an off-nominal orbit and ultimately deemed lost. The FAA has grounded New Glenn while Blue Origin investigates the issue, and the incident casts uncertainty over the rocket's 2026 launch cadence. Despite the mishap, the company aims to continue flights and pursue milestones like the Blue Moon lunar landers, with NASA and industry partners expressing cautious optimism about ongoing programs.
Blue Origin's massive New Glenn rocket (NG-3) failed to deliver AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite to the planned low-Earth orbit after an upper-stage engine underperformed; the booster safely landed on the droneship, but the satellite's altitude was too low to operate and will be deorbited. The FAA will oversee the Blue Origin-led investigation, with Blue Origin cooperating and reporting on corrective actions, while NASA's administrator noted that this setback will inform future Artemis-related efforts.
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket failed to place an AST SpaceMobile satellite into a stable orbit, turning the payload into space junk and triggering an FAA investigation that could delay NASA's Artemis Moon program, potentially pushing the first Moon landing from 2024 to 2028 and complicating Artemis 3's planned docking tests as NASA pursues multiple concurrent launches with SLS/Orion and SpaceX's Starship.
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket launched a satellite, but it ended up in the wrong orbit, prompting officials to ground the mission at Cape Canaveral while they review what went wrong.
The FAA grounded Blue Origin’s New Glenn following the NG-3 mission’s second-stage mishap, which prevented AST SpaceMobile’s satellite from reaching the intended orbit, triggering a safety investigation and a return-to-flight pause pending reviews by the FAA, NASA, the NTSB, and the U.S. Space Force.
The FAA has grounded Blue Origin’s New Glenn after its second stage placed AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite into a lower-than-planned orbit; the booster landed safely, but the satellite cannot operate and will be de-orbited. Authorities have offered few details, Space Force data is inconclusive about what’s in orbit, and a return-to-flight timeline has not been provided.
AST SpaceMobile’s stock fell about 9% after Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket placed the BlueBird 7 satellite in a lower-than-planned orbit and the satellite was later deemed lost. Insurance will cover the loss, and AST still plans monthly launches in 2026 with satellites 8–10 ready to ship. Analysts say the financial impact should be limited, but investor sentiment is now more closely tied to Blue Origin’s trajectory, potentially complicating AST’s goal of 45 satellites by year-end.
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket carried AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird satellite, but the upper stage placed it into an orbit too low for its thrusters to operate, effectively dooming the mission; AST plans to de-orbit the satellite under its insurance, while Blue Origin continues with other tests and AST pursues a larger BlueBird constellation in the coming years.
Blue Origin's New Glenn booster completed a successful landing, signaling a reusable launch vehicle milestone, but AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite reached too-low an orbit and will deorbit, making the overall mission a partial success.
Blue Origin's third New Glenn flight recovered the first stage, but the second stage placed AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite into a lower-than-planned, unusable orbit, rendering the payload inoperable and likely to deorbit; investigators are assessing what went wrong.
Blue Origin’s New Glenn achieved a successful reuse of its first-stage booster with a precise landing, but the mission’s upper stage did not place AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 into the planned orbit, delivering the satellite to an off-nominal, too-low orbit that will require de-orbiting, despite payload separation and the satellite powering on. The mishap tempers the milestone of reusability with a reminder that upper-stage performance remains a critical challenge for New Glenn and Artemis-era ambitions.