A Blue Origin rocket exploded during a test on the launch pad on the night of Thursday, the 28th, shaking nearby houses and tinting the sky orange for a few moments.
Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’s company, said that its New Glenn rocket exploded during an engine ignition test.
Nobody was injured, according to authorities at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
“É muito cedo para saber a causa principal, mas já estamos trabalhando para descobri-la”, disse Bezos via X. “Um dia muito difícil, mas vamos reconstruir o que for necessário e voltar a voar. Vale a pena.”
Emergency crews remained on site for more than an hour, but authorities stated that there was no threat from smoke or other potential hazards.
The massive New Glenn was taken out of operation in April after placing a satellite into the wrong orbit due to a motor fault. It was only the third flight of the rocket that Blue Origin plans to use to launch lunar landing modules for NASA.
Houses shook near Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach around 9 p.m. local time, with residents taking to social media to ask what had happened. Launch Complex 36 is visible from the beach, and the internet quickly filled with pictures of an orange fireball.
“An anomaly occurred during today’s ignition test,” Blue Origin said in a brief statement. “We will provide updates as soon as we have more information.”
The rocket was scheduled to launch next week with internet satellites that are part of the Amazon LEO constellation in orbit.
Standing 98 meters tall, the New Glenn made its debut in 2025. It was named in honor of John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth, and is much larger and more powerful than the New Shepard rockets, which have already carried tourists to the edge of space from Texas. Source: Associated Press.
*Content translated with the aid of Artificial Intelligence, reviewed and edited by the Broadcast editorial staff, the real-time news system of Grupo Estado.
