Reference: Found hereBlue Origin says it's on track to launch its towering New Glenn vehicle before the year's end, though the company is still awaiting regulatory approval to conduct a final key test of the massive rocket.
That test, called a "hot fire," involves powering up all seven of the first stage's BE-4 engines and firing them to full thrust while the rocket sits on the pad. The test is designed to mirror how the vehicle will operate during lift-off. If all goes to plan during the hot fire test, Blue Origin will move to integrate the fairing (the part of the rocket that holds the payload) as the final step before launch.
The 320-foot-tall rocket will be capable of carrying 45 metric tons (99,200 pounds) to low Earth orbit. This is more powerful than United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur and SpaceX's Falcon Heavy in its reusable configuration. For comparison, SpaceX's Starship, the largest rocket ever built, is designed to carry 100-150 metric tons to LEO.
In the shorter term, getting New Glenn up and running is likely key to turning Blue Origin into a profitable business. While Blue Origin's financials are not public, and it benefits enormously from Bezos' personal fortune, the Amazon founder said during that same summit that he anticipates it one day growing into his biggest business yet.
"I think it's going to be the best business that I've ever been involved in, but it's going to take a while," he said.
This inaugural New Glenn mission was originally slated to fly a high-profile pair of satellites to Mars for NASA, for a launch window that opened in October. But the space agency ultimately decided to push back that mission to another New Glenn launch in the spring of 2025, citing potential issues that could arise should the rocket be delayed.
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