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Blue Origin Unveils a Super-Heavy New Glenn, Reshaping the Path to the Moon
Blue Origin has taken a major step toward turning New Glenn from a single heavy-lift rocket into an entire family of launch vehicles aimed at everything from Amazon’s Kuiper satellites to crewed lunar missions.In a sweeping update released on November 20, the company detailed both near-term upgrades to the current New Glenn and a new super-heavy variant dubbed New Glenn 9×4. Together, the pair are meant to serve as a flexible, reusable backbone for missions in Earth orbit, cislunar space, and ev
Blue Origin Unveils Full-Scale Deployable Aerobrake System, Opening a New Era for Planetary Missions
Blue Origin has revealed a full-scale, deployable aerobrake system, marking one of the company’s most significant advances in spacecraft atmospheric-entry and orbital-maneuver hardware to date. Designed to use planetary atmospheres to slow spacecraft and reduce propellant requirements, the new system could reshape how missions to the Moon, Mars, and Earth orbit are planned and executed.The aerobrake prototype—shown in a demonstration released by Blue Origin—features a large, umbrella-like struct
Rocket Lab’s HASTE “Van” Mission: Advancing Hypersonic Testing from Wallops
Rocket Lab successfully launched its latest HASTE mission—codenamed “Van”—from Launch Complex 2 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Wallops Island, Virginia. The mission lifted off on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at approximately 8:00 a.m. EST following a weather delay the previous day.The mission was originally slated to fly on Monday, but the first launch attempt was scrubbed due to high winds at the launch site. Wallops frequently experiences strong coastal wind layers that can exceed al
Artemis II Moves Forward as Fully-Stacked SLS Prepares for America’s Return to Deep Space
With the federal government reopened and NASA centers returning to full operational tempo, progress on Artemis II is accelerating once again. Inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center, the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft now stand fully stacked—forming the complete 322-foot rocket that will send astronauts on the first crewed lunar mission of the Artemis program.A Fully Stacked Rocket Ready for TestingNASA achieved a major milestone on October 19, 2025, when the
Blue Origin Successfully Launches ESCAPADE on New Glenn - Achieves First Droneship Landing
Blue Origin has officially entered the heavy lift arena with a flawless launch and recovery of its New Glenn rocket, delivering Rocket Labs twin ESCAPADE spacecraft toward Mars while also achieving its first ever booster landing on an ocean going droneship.This mission stands as a defining milestone not only for Blue Origin but for Rocket Lab, NASA's small mission program, and the future of reusable heavy lift launch systems.New Glenn Blue Origins Heavy Lift Future Takes ShapeTowering more than