--- title: "Ahead of October Launch, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Rocket Explodes During Testing" description: "Jeff Bezos' Blue Origins is tripping over its own feet as it races to meet an October deadline. One rocket portion exploded during testing." date: "2024-08-22" modified: "2024-08-22" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-rocket-explodes-testing" categories: - "Blue Origin" - "Future Society" - "Jeff Bezos" - "Space" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "blue origin" - "jeff bezos" - "mars" - "new glenn" - "the digest" --- # Ahead of October Launch, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Rocket Explodes During Testing ![The company is tripping over its own feet to meet a tight NASA deadline.]() *\Image: Blue Origin\* ## Mission Glennpossible Jeff Bezos' rocket venture Blue Origin is tripping over its own feet as it races to meet an October deadline. The company is still hoping to have its New Glenn orbital rocket ready for NASA's EscaPADE mission, which is scheduled to launch later this year, taking advantage of a rare alignment of the Earth and Mars to launch two spacecraft toward the Red Planet. The next time the two planets will be this close won't occur for another two years. But as [*Bloomberg* reports](), Blue Origin is facing major setbacks in the development of the 321-foot rocket. According to the report, an upper rocket portion failed during stress testing and exploded during testing, and a separate portion imploded like a soda can after engineers failed to install the necessary pressure-release valves before moving it from a humid exterior hangar into an air-conditioned space. The launch platform, designed to compete with SpaceX's Falcon 9 and launch Amazon's Project Kuiper satellite constellation, is already a whopping four years behind schedule. And given the latest news, it's starting to look increasingly unlikely that New Glenn will be ready to boost NASA's two Mars spacecraft into Earth's orbit in a matter of just two months. ## Failure to Launch That's despite all the flight hardware being complete, as a Blue Origin spokesperson told *Bloomberg*. The company is now working on assembling the various parts and engine integrations. The company has already experienced other major setbacks, including an [engine explosion]() of its much smaller New Shepard rocket in September 2022, which grounded the space tourist shuttle until December 2023. Blue Origin has also reshuffled much of its upper management in the midst of the drama, including the [appointment]() of a new CEO in December, Dave Limp, who has since installed several new executives in an apparent attempt to kick the company into high gear. The company is still hiring at a breakneck pace. But even with a slate of new talent, it's still facing some major technical hurdles, including the much-plagued BE-4 rocket engines that will power its New Glenn rocket. The engines, which are also being used for the United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket, [have faced years of delays]() and were only recently delivered. With easily avoidable user errors plaguing its rocket's development, Blue Origin is facing a major uphill battle to [rise to the occasion]() — and a lucrative NASA contract hangs in the balance. Rocket Lab, the maker of the two Mars spacecraft, recently [revealed that it had entered "hero mode]()" to get the probes ready for an October launch. But whether those efforts will pay off remains to be seen. **More on Blue Origin:** *[Elon Musk Explodes With Fury at Jeff Bezos]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()