Blue Origin, the aerospace company founded by Jeff Bezos, has made significant strides with its second New Glenn rocket. On Wednesday, October 8, the company rolled the first stage of the New Glenn rocket out to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This crucial move is part of the preparations for the rocket's upcoming liftoff, which is anticipated to occur either late this month or in November.
The upcoming launch will be pivotal, as it will send NASA's twin ESCAPADE probes—the Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers—on their journey to Mars. These probes are designed to study the Martian atmosphere and investigate how it is influenced by solar wind and space weather. Standing at an impressive height of about 320 feet (98 meters) when fully stacked, the New Glenn rocket is comparable to SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy in terms of capabilities.
New Glenn had its debut earlier this year in January, completing a successful test flight that reached orbit as planned. During that initial mission, Blue Origin attempted to land the first stage of the rocket on a ship at sea. However, the company did not achieve a successful landing at that time. The upcoming mission represents an operational flight, marking a significant milestone for Blue Origin as it embarks on more ambitious projects in the future.
The two probes, aptly named Blue and Gold, were constructed by the California-based company Rocket Lab and arrived on Florida's Space Coast on September 22. This timely arrival sets the stage for the next phase of preparations as Blue Origin gears up for the launch. Wednesday was indeed a notable day for the company, as it also successfully sent six individuals to and from suborbital space aboard its New Shepard vehicle earlier that morning.
As Blue Origin continues to develop its capabilities with the New Glenn rocket, the aerospace community eagerly anticipates the results of the upcoming mission, which promises to enhance our understanding of Mars and its atmospheric dynamics.
