Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's space corporation Blue Origin has revealed a secret weapon to halt SpaceX's dominance. However, the company failed to recover the first stage rocket, resulting in a mixed evaluation of achieving the goal of a 'reusable launch vehicle.'
Blue Origin launched its self-developed reusable launch vehicle 'New Glenn' at 4:04 p.m. (Korea time) on the 16th from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. In Eastern Standard Time, this was at 2:04 a.m. on the 16th.
New Glenn is a reusable launch vehicle that Blue Origin has developed since 2016. New Glenn is a two-stage rocket, standing 98 meters tall and 7 meters in diameter. It can carry a payload of up to 13 tons to geostationary orbit (GEO) and can transport up to 45 tons to low Earth orbit (LEO). For this first launch, rather than a commercial satellite or payload, a dummy payload known as 'Blue Ring Pathfinder' was used. Its weight is about 20 tons, which is approximately half of what New Glenn can carry.
New Glenn's path to its first test flight was fraught with challenges. Blue Origin had prepared for the New Glenn launch on the 10th, 12th, and 13th, but the launch was postponed due to poor weather conditions in the Atlantic where the first stage rocket was to land and issues with the hydraulic system.
Finally, the first launch of New Glenn took place, but it is considered a partial success. The second stage rocket of New Glenn successfully entered the target orbit. However, the recovery of the first stage rocket failed. According to the plan, New Glenn's first stage rocket was supposed to land on the drone ship 'Jacklyn' waiting in the Atlantic Ocean about six hours after takeoff. Jacklyn is named after Bezos's mother. Thus, it failed to return to its mother's embrace.
Ariane Cornell, Blue Origin's vice president of space systems, noted in a statement immediately after the launch that 'achieving booster recovery is a really challenging task.' She added, 'It seems a bit reckless to attempt this on the first flight. However, the data gained from the mission attempt is immensely valuable.'
Despite the failure to recover the first stage rocket, the first launch of New Glenn is deemed to have significant implications. The success of New Glenn's second stage rocket in entering orbit creates the possibility of breaking SpaceX's monopoly in the launch vehicle market. SpaceX effectively monopolizes the launch vehicle market with its reusable Falcon 9 rocket. If a new, larger reusable launch vehicle comes into play, it could alter the competitive landscape of the market.
New Glenn, at a length of 98 meters, is larger than Falcon 9 (70 meters). In terms of payload capacity, New Glenn can carry 45 tons, which is twice that of Falcon 9's 23 tons.
Bezos is preparing for a low Earth orbit satellite service called 'Project Kuiper' to compete with SpaceX's Starlink. More than 3,000 satellites must be deployed in low Earth orbit for Project Kuiper, and New Glenn is set to play a central role. If New Glenn succeeds, Blue Origin could emerge as a competitor to SpaceX in the launch vehicle market and in low Earth orbit satellite service.