Blue Origin targets mid-October for New Glenn’s inaugural flight and launch of NASA’s Escapade Mars mission

Blue Origin’s New Glenn heavy-lift rocket and its Mars-bound NASA payload now have a tentative launch date. The corporate on Friday that the inaugural flight will happen no sooner than October 13, carrying to assist NASA research the consequences of photo voltaic wind on Mars’ ambiance. This would be the first time New Glenn flies in its growth, and the date cuts nicely into the window of alternative for journey to Mars, which happens roughly each two years primarily based on the planetary alignments. That launch interval opens on September 29 and extends to mid-October, per .

The mission will carry off from Area Launch Advanced 36 at Cape Canaveral Area Pressure Station in Florida. The dual spacecraft of NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers mission (Escapade) on August 19 to start preparations and integration with the launch car.

Now, the strain is absolutely on for Jeff Bezos-founded Blue Origin to get New Glenn prepared in time. reported on Wednesday that the corporate lately suffered two failures at its manufacturing unit that resulted in harm to {hardware} for its second and third New Glenn flights. However, a spokesperson informed the publication that it’s nonetheless on monitor for this yr’s inaugural launch.