Blue Origin’s New Glenn Destroyed in Explosion During Cape Canaveral Hot-Fire Test

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket was destroyed in an explosion during a hot-fire test late Wednesday at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, a major setback for the company’s heavy-lift launch program as it was already under Federal Aviation Administration scrutiny after an April flight anomaly. No injuries were reported, and Blue Origin and government officials said they were investigating what happened.

The explosion occurred at about 9 p.m. Eastern at Launch Complex 36 during a static-fire test, a ground test in which a rocket’s engines are fired while the vehicle remains on the pad. Blue Origin said in a statement: “We experienced an anomaly during today’s hotfire test. All personnel have been accounted for. We will provide updates as we learn more.” Multiple news outlets, citing live video and livestreams of the test, reported that the rocket exploded on the pad and was destroyed.

Safety officials said the incident did not appear to extend beyond the launch site. Blue Origin said all personnel were safe, and Jeff Bezos, the company’s founder, wrote on X that “All personnel are accounted for and safe.” Local emergency officials monitored the fire and said there was no immediate threat to the public. The FAA, which licenses commercial rocket launches and oversees mishap investigations, said it was aware of the event. “The FAA is aware that the Blue Origin New Glenn vehicle experienced an anomaly during a static fire test …,” the agency said in a statement to media.

Space Launch Delta 45, the U.S. Space Force unit that manages the Eastern Range at Cape Canaveral, confirmed the anomaly happened during a hot-fire test and said officials were “evaluating available data to determine the exact cause of the anomaly.” The unit also said, “The Eastern Range remains fully mission capable and continues to support operations at all other launch complexes.” That indicates the disruption appears centered on LC-36 rather than halting other launch activity at the Cape.

The loss is likely to affect Blue Origin’s near-term launch plans. New Glenn was being readied for its next mission, and reporting had indicated that flight was expected to carry a batch of Amazon’s Kuiper internet satellites. With the rocket destroyed and pad equipment also reportedly damaged, Blue Origin’s upcoming manifest is now under added pressure, though the company and Space Launch Delta 45 have not publicly quantified the damage at the site.

The timing makes the failure more consequential than a standalone test accident. New Glenn, the orbital rocket central to Blue Origin’s effort to compete in commercial and government launch markets, was already facing regulatory and operational pressure after its April 19 NG-3 mission. In that flight, an upper-stage anomaly left an AST SpaceMobile satellite in the wrong orbit. That mishap triggered FAA oversight and a required investigation before the vehicle could return to flight.

Now Blue Origin is dealing with a second major New Glenn problem in just over a month, this time involving the loss of a rocket on the pad before launch. Bezos said 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.”

As of publication, no root cause had been announced, and the full extent of damage to the pad and support equipment had not been made public.