A New Glenn rocket exploded during a hotfire test on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida, producing a bright display around the site. The founder stated that all personnel were accounted for and that the root cause was not yet known, while work to determine it had already begun. The hotfire test involved igniting the rocket’s engines briefly while the vehicle remained secured to the pad to verify systems before launch. The event occurred during what would have been the fourth mission, planned to carry 48 satellites for Amazon’s satellite internet network. NASA acknowledged the anomaly, said it would support a thorough investigation, assess near-term mission impacts, and provide updates on Artemis and Moon Base plans.
"“It's too early to know the root cause but we're already working to find it,” Bezos wrote. “Very rough day, but we'll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It's worth it.”"
"A hotfire test, or static fire test, is a standard procedure carried out on the engines of a rocket, spacecraft, or prototype, in which the engines are ignited for a very short period of time and then shut down while the vehicle remains secured to the launch pad. The purpose of this test is to verify that the systems are functioning correctly before an actual launch."
"“NASA is aware of the anomaly that occurred tonight at Launch Complex 36 involving Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station,” said NASA administrator Jared Isaacman in a post on X. “Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets.”"
"Isaacman further said that NASA would provide updates on any potential impacts to the Artemis and Moon Base missions when they were available; the agency has contracted with both Blue Origin and SpaceX for various aspects of its plans for a lunar return."
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