A rocket from Blue Origin, the space company of billionaire Jeff Bezos, exploded during a test in Cape Canaveral, Florida. An “anomaly” occurred during a so-called hot-fire test, the company said, reporting that all personnel involved are safe.
Source: AD.nl
A hot-fire test is a kind of dress rehearsal in which all systems are run through while the rocket is anchored. Images on social media, such as the one below, show flames forming at the base of the New Glenn rocket, quickly growing higher, and then exploding.
In a post on X, Bezos talked about “a very tough day.” According to the Amazon founder, it is still too early to determine what exactly went wrong. Bezos indicated that his company will “rebuild what needs to be rebuilt. Because it’s worth it.”
Space competitor Elon Musk shared images of the explosion on X, calling it “unfortunate” and writing: “Rockets are hard.” Under a message from Blue Origin, he responded with the words: “Good to see this, I hope you recover quickly.”
Blue Origin has spent billions of dollars and about a decade developing New Glenn, a nearly 300-foot rocket with a reusable first stage, in an effort to compete with SpaceX’s Falcon and Starship.
