Blue Origin fires up 2nd stage of huge New Glenn rocket ahead of debut launch (video) (Image Credit: Space.com)
Blue Origin carried out a hotfire test for its New Glenn rocket second stage on Monday (Sept. 23) as the company moves toward the huge vehicle’s debut flight.
The 15-second hotfire test was conducted on Sept. 23 to validate interactions between the subsystems on the New Glenn second stage, its two BE-3U engines and the ground control systems.
Water deluge systems preceded the lighting of the engines, which then fired to demonstrate tank pressurization control and thrust vector control systems, as well as BE-3U engine startup and shutdown sequences.
“In addition to testing our flight hardware, this hotfire test was also an opportunity for the launch operations team to practice launch day procedures on console and verify timing for a number of critical operations,” a Blue Origin statement read.
Related: Facts about New Glenn, Blue Origin’s reusable rocket
New Glenn is targeting launch in November from Launch Complex 36 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, according to Blue Origin.
Blue Origin is now into the final stretch of preparations for the upcoming launch. New Glenn will carry the company’s new Blue Ring spacecraft platform on a National Security Space Launch certification flight.
This first New Glenn mission, or NG-1, was originally supposed to launch NASA’s twin ESCAPADE Mars probes. However, a recent review of launch preparations led to a change of plan, and those two spacecraft will likely need to wait for the next Mars launch window, which opens in late 2026.
New Glenn is more than 320 feet (98 meters) tall. Its first stage is powered by seven BE-4 engines, which burn liquefied natural gas and liquid oxygen. Blue Origin, which is run by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, also makes the New Shepard rocket-capsule combo, which takes people and scientific experiments on brief trips to suborbital space.
