New Glenn exploded during a hotfire test at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, with the rocket engulfed in a large ball of flame. Blue Origin reported that all personnel were accounted for and safe, and said the root cause was not yet known while work to determine it had already begun. The explosion occurred while preparing for the rocket’s upcoming fourth mission. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said spaceflight is unforgiving and that developing heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult, pledging support for a thorough investigation and assessment of near-term mission impacts. The event also affected market sentiment around related space stocks, including AST SpaceMobile, which had previously participated in an earlier New Glenn mission that ended with an upper-stage failure.
"“All personnel are accounted for and safe,” Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos wrote on X. “It's too early to know the root cause but we're already working to find it. Very rough day, but we'll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It's worth it.”"
"“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.”"
"The rocket exploded while it was being tested for an upcoming flight—New Glenn's fourth mission. Video shows the rocket becoming engulfed in a big ball of flame at Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station."
"AST SpaceMobile had taken part in New Glenn's mission in April, when things also didn't go as planned. The third mission's goal was to put AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite into orbit, but an upper-stage failure prevented it, with the satellite remaining in too low an orbit to sustain it."
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