New Glenn
OperationalBlue Origin · United States · First flight 2025 · Reusable first stage
Blue Origin's orbital heavy-lift launch vehicle, with a reusable first stage powered by seven BE-4 engines and a seven-meter payload fairing. Named after astronaut John Glenn. It landed its first stage for the first time on its second flight in November 2025. The third flight (NG-3, April 19, 2026) suffered an upper-stage engine shortfall that left AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 in too low an orbit, and the satellite was lost. On May 28, 2026, a New Glenn exploded during a static fire test at Launch Complex 36; Blue Origin traced the explosion to a main oxygen valve on one BE-4 engine and says it hopes to return New Glenn to flight by the end of 2026.
Launch price
Not published
Payload to LEO
45,000 kg
13,000 kg to GTO
Career record
66.7%
2/3 successful · as of 2026-10-09
Next launch
Dec 2026
Blue Ring-1
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Launch activity, live
From SpaceNexus's launch tracker (tracked since Jan 16, 2025); outcomes recorded as each flight lands. Career totals above are the vehicle's full history.
Last 90 days
0
launches flown
Tracked flights
3
2 success · 0 partial · 1 failed
Tracked success rate
66.7%
full successes / attempts; partial failures are not successes
On the manifest
8
upcoming launches
Upcoming
Specifications
| Height | 98 m |
| Diameter | 7 m |
| Stages | 2 |
| Engines | 7x BE-4 + 2x BE-3U |
| Propellant | CH4 / LOX (booster) + LH2 / LOX (upper) |
| Fairing diameter | 7 m |
| Payload to LEO | 45,000 kg |
| Payload to GTO | 13,000 kg |
| Reusable | Yes (first stage) |
| First flight | 2025-01-16 |
| Last flight | Active |
| Variants seen on the manifest | New Glenn |
Where it launches from
Frequently asked
How much does a New Glenn launch cost?
Blue Origin has not published a list price for New Glenn.
When is the next New Glenn launch?
The next tracked New Glenn launch is Blue Ring-1, Dec 2026 from Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA. Dates move; Mission Control carries the live countdown.
How reliable is New Glenn?
New Glenn has flown 3 times as of 2026-10-09, with 2 successes, 1 failures and 0 partial failures: a 66.7% success rate.
How much can New Glenn carry?
45,000 kg to low Earth orbit, 13,000 kg to geostationary transfer orbit.
Status
groundedas of 2026-09-06
Grounded while Launch Complex 36 is rebuilt after the May 28, 2026 static-fire explosion; return to flight targeted before the end of 2026.
- 2025-11NG-2: booster landed on the ship Jacklyn, the first heavy-lift booster landing outside SpaceX.
- 2026-04-19NG-3: first booster reflight, landed again; the upper stage's thrust anomaly on its second burn left the payload in the wrong orbit. FAA grounded the vehicle.
- 2026-05-28A booster and its fueled upper stage exploded during a static fire on LC-36; Blue Origin traced it to a BE-4 main oxygen valve. The pad was badly damaged but repairable; no injuries.
- 2026-08-05Blue Origin named the cause and said it expects to fly again before the end of 2026.
Next: Return to flight from a rebuilt LC-36; the next tracked launch is what moves this to flying.
Sources: Spaceflight Now, 2026-04-20 · Space.com (FAA grounding) · Blue Origin statement, 2026-08-05 · Wikipedia: 2026 New Glenn rocket explosion
Public commitments
On the Promise Ledger: 4 entries: 1 met late; 2 revised; 1 pending. Exact words, primary sources, deadlines and outcomes.
- New Glenn flies again in 2026 after the May 28 pad explosion
- New Glenn NG-3 launch no earlier than late February 2026
- Second New Glenn flight, with another booster landing attempt, in spring 2025
- Blue Origin orbital rocket launching from Cape Canaveral this decade
What the statuses mean
- Met late:
- happened after the deadline.
- Revised:
- the date or quantity was moved before it came due.
- Pending:
- the deadline has not passed.
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