Amazon turns to Jeff Bezos’ other company to do some heavy lifting

Blue Origin is gearing up for the next mission of its New Glenn heavy-lift rocket, just weeks after a previous launch failure left a customer's payload stranded in an unusable orbit. Investigators have pinpointed the cause of that mishap, and the Federal Aviation Administration has concluded its investigation, paving the way for Blue Origin’s upcoming flight. The next launch is set to deliver an impressive payload of 48 commercial satellites for Amazon’s broadband network, marking a significant milestone as it will be the largest number of satellites launched by Amazon from a single rocket. This mission surpasses previous launches conducted by United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V, SpaceX’s Falcon 9, and Europe’s Ariane 6. While Blue Origin and Amazon, both founded by Jeff Bezos, have not disclosed an exact launch date, indications from public airspace and maritime closure notices suggest a possible lift-off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida as early as next Thursday, June 4. In the lead-up to the launch, Blue Origin is expected to move the New Glenn rocket to its launch pad for a crucial test-firing of its seven main engines, powered by liquefied natural gas and liquid oxygen. Achieving a launch turnaround in under two months following a failure would demonstrate Blue Origin’s commitment to increasing the launch frequency of the New Glenn rocket. This effort is particularly timely, as ULA’s Vulcan rocket, developed around the same time, has faced significant challenges in maintaining a consistent launch schedule since its debut in 2024. Two of its four launches have encountered issues with solid rocket boosters, resulting in a grounding of the launcher while investigations continue into these recurring anomalies.