Blue Origin blames New Glenn fireball on engine oxygen valve
Small modifications under way as Bezos's rocket biz races to rebuild pad and fly again this year
Blue Origin has determined that the main oxygen valve on one of the BE-4 engines on its New Glenn rocket was the source of the May explosion at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Launch Complex 36. CEO Dave Limp confirmed this after hardware recovery and inspections. The exact failure mode of the valve and how it led to the explosion were not explained.
The New Glenn, with its seven BE-4 engines, was undergoing a preflight hotfire test when the blast occurred, destroying the rocket and nearby equipment. Blue Origin is rapidly rebuilding the facility and plans to launch in 2026, now with a revised integration process and horizontal staging. The company has developed and will soon produce updated hardware for the valve, which can be retrofitted to existing engines.
ULA, which uses two BE-4 engines on their Vulcan rocket, has not yet commented on whether their engines will need the same valve modifications.
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Also reported by 2 other outlets
- Blue Origin blames New Glenn fireball on engine oxygen valve theregister.com
- Blue Origin narrowing in on root cause of catastrophic rocket accident arstechnica.com
