Blue Origin’s New Glenn heavy rocket exploded during a static-fire test at Kennedy Space Center last week. NASA administrator said on June 1 that repairing the New Glenn–dedicated launch pad will take considerable time and may not be completed until 2028. US media say the incident could delay Artemis crewed lunar missions. NASA has multiple Artemis contracts with Blue Origin and had planned to use New Glenn later this year to launch an uncrewed Blue Moon lander as the first step toward a lunar b

Blue Origin’s New Glenn heavy rocket exploded during a static-fire test at Kennedy Space Center last week. NASA administrator said on June 1 that repairing the New Glenn–dedicated launch pad will take considerable time and may not be completed until 2028. US media say the incident could delay Artemis crewed lunar missions. NASA has multiple Artemis contracts with Blue Origin and had planned to use New Glenn later this year to launch an uncrewed Blue Moon lander as the first step toward a lunar base project.