Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket achieved a significant milestone during its third launch on April 19, 2026, by successfully flying into orbit using previously flown hardware for the first time. The mission, known as NG-3, carried the Bluebird 7 satellite into low Earth orbit, although the satellite entered an “off-nominal” orbit shortly after launch.
The launch took place at 7:25 a.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral, Florida, after a brief countdown delay. The first stage of New Glenn, powered by a new engine, successfully landed on Blue Origin’s drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean approximately six minutes post-launch. Blue Origin made modifications to the thermal protection system to handle re-entry heat and upgraded the guidance system for this flight.
While the primary goal was to launch the Bluebird 7 satellite, there was concern over its trajectory post-launch. The satellite is part of AST SpaceMobile’s Internet constellation and is comparable in size to its predecessor, Bluebird 6. Despite the satellite’s orbital issues, Blue Origin’s successful reuse of the rocket’s first stage positions it competitively against SpaceX’s reusable launch systems.
Blue Origin is also gearing up for future missions, including launching its Blue Moon lunar lander as part of NASA’s Artemis program. An unmanned version of the lander is expected to launch soon, with significant developments ongoing for both Blue Origin and SpaceX’s lunar vehicles.
Source link
