posted 12-09-2024 01:25 PM               

Blue Ring Pathfinder Payload Ready for Launch

Blue Origin's New Glenn on Track for This Year

Blue Origin's payload for New Glenn's first mission, NG-1, is ready for launch this year. NG-1 will carry the company's Blue Ring Pathfinder and mark the rocket's first National Security Space Launch certification flight. The encapsulated payload will be integrated onto the launch vehicle following the hotfire. New Glenn will lift off from Blue Origin's Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The pathfinder was developed by Blue Origin's In-Space Systems business unit. It will test Blue Ring's core flight, ground systems, and operational capabilities. NG-1 will carry the Blue Ring Pathfinder payload as part of the Defense Innovation Unit's (DIU) Orbital Logistics prototype effort. DIU funding is helping to enable future Department of Defense missions.

The demonstrator includes a communications array, power systems, and a flight computer affixed to a secondary payload adapter ring. The pathfinder will validate Blue Ring's communications capabilities from orbit to ground. The mission will also test its in-space telemetry, tracking and command hardware, and ground-based radiometric tracking that will be used on the future Blue Ring production space vehicle. The pathfinder will remain onboard New Glenn's second stage for the duration of an expected six-hour mission.

"We're excited to demonstrate Blue Ring's advanced in-space operations on New Glenn's inaugural mission," said Paul Ebertz, Senior Vice President of Blue Origin's In-Space Systems. "Blue 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."

About Blue Ring

Blue Ring addresses two of the most difficult challenges in spaceflight today: Growing space infrastructure and the need for increased mobility in space. The spacecraft's ability to maneuver to multiple orbits and locations, deploy and host payloads, and perform onboard computing and communications will enable groundbreaking missions for a variety of customers.

The multi-mission space mobility platform can deliver and host 3,000 kilograms of payloads across 13 ports to destinations in GEO, cislunar, and interplanetary space. Blue Ring's ports can accommodate ESPA and ESPA Grande class satellites and up to a 2.5 metric ton payload on its top deck.

About New Glenn

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) tall and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage is designed for 25 missions and powered by seven of Blue Origin's BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquid oxygen (LOX) / liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled oxygen-rich staged combustion engines ever flown. Each BE-4 engine generates 550,000 lbf (2,450 kN) thrust at sea level with deep-throttle capability. The vehicle's second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust together.

posted 12-27-2024 08:22 PM               

New Glenn rocket completes integrated hotfire

New Glenn successfully completed an integrated launch vehicle hotfire test today (Dec. 27), the final major milestone on our road to first flight. NG-1 will carry a Blue Ring Pathfinder as its first manifested payload and will launch from Launch Complex 36 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The seven-engine hotfire lasted 24 seconds and marked the first time we operated the entire flight vehicle as an integrated system. The multi-day test campaign leading up to the hotfire included numerous inert functional and tanking tests. The integrated launch vehicle included the first and second stages of the NG-1 flight vehicle, and a payload test article comprised of manufacturing test demonstrator fairings, a high-capacity fixed adapter flight unit, and a 45,000 lb. payload mass simulator.

One of the primary goals of the test campaign was to demonstrate day-of-launch operations in our NG-1 test configuration. Additionally, the team conducted several tests to validate vehicle and ground systems in the fully integrated, on-pad configuration. This data will be utilized to finalize day-of-launch timelines, confirm expected performance, and correlate our models to real-world test data.

"This is a monumental milestone and a glimpse of what's just around the corner for New Glenn's first launch," said Jarrett Jones, SVP, New Glenn. "Today's success proves that our rigorous approach to testing–combined with our incredible tooling and design engineering–is working as intended."

The tanking test included a full run-through of the terminal count sequence, testing the hand-off authority to and from the flight computer, and collecting fluid validation data. The first stage (GS1) tanks were filled and pressed with liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquid oxygen (LOX), and the second stage (GS2) with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen–both to representative NG-1 set points.

The formal NG-1 Wet Dress Rehearsal demonstrated the final launch procedures leading into the hotfire engine run. All seven engines performed nominally, firing for 24 seconds, including at 100% thrust for 13 seconds. The test also demonstrated New Glenn's autogenous pressurization system, which self-generates gases to pressurize GS1's propellant tanks.

This test campaign captured a number of firsts for the New Glenn launch system, including the first seven-engine operations, the first integrated GS1-GS2 tanking demonstration, the first LNG/LOX fill for GS1, as well as first chilled helium operations for GS2.

The campaign met all objectives and marks the final major test prior to launch.

Blue Origin has several New Glenn vehicles in production and a full customer manifest. Customers include NASA, Amazon's Project Kuiper, AST SpaceMobile, several telecommunications providers, and a mix of U.S. government customers. Blue Origin is certifying New Glenn with the U.S. Space Force for the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program to meet emerging national security objectives.

About New Glenn

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) high and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage aims for a minimum of 25 missions and will land on Jacklyn, a sea-based platform located several hundred miles downrange. Reusability is integral to radically reducing cost-per-launch.

The vehicle is powered by seven of Blue Origin's BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine ever flown. LNG is cleaner-burning and higher-performing than kerosene-based fuels, and the seven BE-4s generate over 3.8 million lbf of thrust. The vehicle's second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to together yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust.

In addition to the BE-4 and BE-3U, Blue Origin manufactures BE-7 engines for our Blue Moon lunar landers and New Shepard's BE-3PM engine.

posted 01-16-2025 02:01 AM               

Godspeed, New Glenn: Blue Origin's first heavy-lift rocket lifts off to orbit

Zero-g and New Glenn is doing fine.

Blue Origin's debut of its first orbital-class rocket successfully launched Thursday (Jan. 16), after nearly a decade in development. The New Glenn, called such after John Glenn, the first American astronaut to orbit Earth in 1962, followed in its namesake's trajectory by reaching orbit about 13 minutes after a 2:03 a.m. EST (0703 GMT) liftoff from Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

posted 01-16-2025 07:35 AM               

Blue Origin's New Glenn Reaches Orbit

New Glenn safely reached its intended orbit during today's NG-1 mission, accomplishing our primary objective.

New Glenn's seven BE-4 engines ignited on January 16, 2025, at 2:03 a.m. EST (0703 UTC) from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The second stage is in its final orbit following two successful burns of the BE-3U engines. The Blue Ring Pathfinder is receiving data and performing well.

We lost the booster during descent.

"I'm incredibly proud New Glenn achieved orbit on its first attempt," said Dave Limp, CEO, Blue Origin. "We knew landing our booster, 'So You're Telling Me There's a Chance,' on the first try was an ambitious goal. We'll learn a lot from today and try again at our next launch this spring. Thank you to all of Team Blue for this incredible milestone."

New Glenn is foundational to advancing our customers' critical missions as well as our own. The vehicle underpins our efforts to establish sustained human presence on the Moon, harness in-space resources, provide multi-mission, multi-orbit mobility through Blue Ring, and establish destinations in low Earth orbit.

Future New Glenn missions will carry the Blue Moon Mark 1 cargo lander and the Mark 2 crewed lander to the Moon as part of NASA's Artemis program.

The program has several vehicles in production and multiple years of orders. Customers include NASA, Amazon's Project Kuiper, AST SpaceMobile, and several telecommunications providers, among others. Blue Origin is certifying New Glenn with the U.S. Space Force for the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program to meet emerging national security objectives.

"Today marks a new era for Blue Origin and for commercial space," said Jarrett Jones, Senior Vice President, New Glenn. "We're focused on ramping our launch cadence and manufacturing rates. My heartfelt thanks to everyone at Blue Origin for the tremendous amount of work in making today's success possible, and to our customers and the space community for their continuous support. We felt that immensely today."