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WASHINGTON \u2014 Blue Origin says it still plans to attempt a first launch of its New Glenn rocket before the end of the year as it makes final vehicle and regulatory preparations.<\/p>\n
The company reaffirmed the schedule for the inaugural flight, a mission called NG-1, in a Dec. 9 statement that also disclosed details about the payload for that flight. The rocket will carry Blue Ring Pathfinder, a payload that will test key technologies for its Blue Ring orbital transfer vehicle.<\/p>\n
Blue Ring Pathfinder consists of a communications array, power system and flight computer installed on a secondary payload adapter. Those systems will be tested while remaining attached to the second stage of the rocket during a six-hour mission.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re excited to demonstrate Blue Ring\u2019s advanced in-space operations on New Glenn\u2019s inaugural mission,\u201d Paul Ebertz, senior vice president for in-space systems at Blue Origin, in a company statement. \u201cBlue Ring plays a critical role in building a road to space, and this mission is an important first step for Blue Ring and enabling dynamic and responsive operations that will greatly benefit our nation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Blue Ring, which Blue Origin announced in 2023<\/a>, is a transfer vehicle for delivering satellites to their desired orbits and for hosting payloads that remain attached. The vehicle has 13 ports that can accommodate 3,000 kilograms of payloads, including a 2,500-kilogram payload on the top deck of the vehicle.<\/p>\n Blue Origin said in the statement that the NG-1 mission \u201cis ready for launch this year\u201d but did not provide a more specific schedule. The company plans to install Blue Ring Pathfinder on the rocket after a static-fire test of the vehicle\u2019s first stage, which has yet to occur.<\/p>\n The company also needs a license from the Federal Aviation Administration, which had not been issued as of Dec. 9. Blue Origin has been performing tanking tests of the vehicle at Cape Canaveral\u2019s Launch Complex 36, Chief Executive Dave Limp said in a Dec. 8 social media post<\/a>, while \u201cwe wait for regulatory approvals for hotfire and launch.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s literally on the pad now waiting for regulatory approval. It\u2019s waiting for its final regulatory approval to launch, so we\u2019re very, very close,\u201d Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, said of New Glenn during a Dec. 4 conversation at the New York Times DealBook Summit<\/a>. He also was not more specific about a launch date.<\/p>\n Blue Ring Pathfinder was not the original payload for the first New Glenn launch. The company had been working with NASA to use that launch for ESCAPADE, a pair of smallsats that will go to Mars to the study the interaction of the planet\u2019s magnetosphere with the solar wind. However, NASA decided in early September to remove the spacecraft from the launch<\/a> out of concerns that the vehicle would not be ready in time for a launch window in mid-October. NASA is now projecting launching ESCAPADE as soon as spring 2025 on another New Glenn.<\/p>\nRelated<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n