Blue Origin is racing against the clock to undo the damage caused by its New Glenn rocket exploding in May.
In a press statement, the company outlined a new “horizontal/vertical hybrid” concept of operations (CONOPS) that will enable an accelerated timeline to launch.
If all goes to plan, it will allow Blue Origin to launch New Glenn again by the end of the year – an outcome that had been written off by skeptics after that May explosion wiped out a large chunk of Blue Origin’s launch infrastructure.
Effectively, Jeff Bezos’ private space company will employ an entirely new launch concept rather than rebuild its launch pad exactly as it was before.
Blue Origin appears to have an ace up its sleeve, though. The new system was already in development for its upcoming super-heavy New Glenn configuration, boosting the chances it achieves its ambitious timeline.
A lot is riding on New Glenn’s return to flight. It could allow Blue Origin to send a lunar lander to the Moon’s south pole later this year. In doing so, it would help NASA’s Artemis program maintain some much-needed momentum.
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded on May 28 during what should have been a routine static fire engine test at the company’s Launch Complex 36A (LC-36A) at Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
The rocket was engulfed by an orange fireball, destroying it as well as critical launch infrastructure. In the Blue Origin statement, CEO Dave Limp confirmed the private company “lost [its] lightning tower, the transporter-erector, and the hydraulic cylinders.”
As its name suggests, the lightning tower provides lightning protection, as well as structural support. The transporter-erector, meanwhile, rolls the rocket to the pad before lifting it vertically into position ahead of launch.
The loss of this infrastructure is a big problem not just for Blue Origin, but also for NASA. The US space agency is deeply reliant on SpaceX and Blue Origin for its Artemis program, which aims to send humans back to the lunar surface by the end of the decade and establish a permanent lunar base before China.
SpaceX’s modified Starship Human Landing System (HLS) program has faced heavy delays. A key on-orbit refueling demonstration that was supposed to take place last year has yet to materialize.
By contrast, Blue Origin appeared to be on track to offer a solid alternative to SpaceX before its explosive setback. Its uncrewed Mk 1 lunar lander was scheduled to fly aboard New Glenn later this year in a mission that would demonstrate its own crewed lander technology.
If Blue Origin’s latest statement is to be believed, though, the New Glenn explosion is nowhere near as bad a setback as was initially believed.
Though the company lost a rocket and suffered infrastructure losses, "we caught a lot of breaks, too, and intend to make the most of them," according to the CEO.
That’s thanks, in large part, to the fact the space company will leverage existing technology to build a more agile launch infrastructure.
“To return to flight this year, we're not rebuilding the same pad," added Limp. "We're going straight to a horizontal/vertical hybrid CONOPS.”
What exactly does this mean?
Blue Origin has traditionally employed a fully horizontal concept of operations (CONOPS). New Glenn’s two stages, and the payload it would carry, were integrated horizontally in a facility. They would then be rolled out to the launch pad on a transporter-erector (TE) that raised the entire vehicle to vertical on the pad for launch.
Under the new hybrid system, the two stages are still joined horizontally. However, they would then be rolled to the pad by a transporter and then lifted vertically by a crane with a specialized breakover feature.
This system was already in the works for Blue Origin’s super-heavy New Glenn iteration – designated 9X4 due to the nine BE-4 engines attached to its first stage.
Besides that head start over building a whole new concept from scratch, Blue Origin also has a functioning crane at its disposal. The company uses a towering mobile harbor crane to lift the 57.5-meter (189-feet) tall New Glenn first stage away from its Jacklyn barge after landing.
Still, there’s no denying Blue Origin is shooting for a highly ambitious launch timeline. SpaceX veterans recently told Ars Technica that they don’t see New Glenn flying from the destroyed launch pad in 2026, largely due to the “time and effort” required to rebuild intricate launch infrastructure.
However, speaking to reporters recently, NASA chief Jared Isaacman emphasized Blue Origin’s “great progress” since the explosion, adding that New Glenn remains “Plan A” to launch Mk 1 this year.
Source: Blue Origin
Fact-checked by Mike McRae
