April 18, 2026, 7:00 a.m. ET
- Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket is scheduled for its third launch from Florida on Sunday, April 19, 2026.
- The rocket is central to Jeff Bezos’ goal of competing with SpaceX in the commercial space market.
- This mission will deploy broadband satellites for AST SpaceMobile and attempt to reuse a first-stage booster.
- Standing over 300 feet tall, New Glenn is one of the largest rockets in the world.
Blue Origin’s mammoth New Glenn rocket is due to get off the ground this weekend for the third time ever from Florida.
Towering more than 300 feet high, the rocket is among the largest of its kind in the world. It’s also central to Jeff Bezos’ ambitions for his Blue Origin spaceflight company to compete with fellow billionaire Elon Musk and SpaceX in the commercial rocket market.
Ahead, New Glenn will be the rocket to launch Bezos’ growing Amazon LEO broadband satellite network – a direct challenge to SpaceX’s Starlink satellite business – and could even later in 2026 propel Blue Origin’s lunar lander to the moon. Blue Origin is also in talks with the U.S. Space Force to expand New Glenn operations to the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
For now, though, the New Glenn rocket is next due to be the launch service provider for a broadband company’s satellites.
Ready for liftoff? As usual, Blue Origin will provide a livestream of the mission.
Here’s how to watch Blue Origin’s live stream of the New Glenn rocket launch.
When is Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket launch from Cape Canaveral?
Blue Origin announced it is targeting Sunday, April 19 for the next launch of its towering New Glenn rocket. The launch window is set to be open from 6:45 to 8:45 a.m. ET at Launch Complex 36, Blue Origin’s site at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
How to watch Blue Origin livestream of New Glenn launch
Blue Origin will provide live coverage of the mission beginning about 30 minutes before launch on its website and on social media platform X.
Launch comes after New Glenn hot fire test
Blue Origin committed to the launch time after New Glenn aced a critical preflight test known as a hot fire.
The test is a critical step before a launch that entails igniting and running the rocket’s engines while the spacecraft is vertical on a launch pad to ensure they are working properly – not unlike revving a car while it’s in park.
What is the New Glenn rocket? How big is it?
Named in honor of NASA astronaut John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth, New Glenn is a powerful two-stage rocket manufactured by Blue Origin classified as a heavy-lift launch vehicle.
The New Glenn rocket stands at about 320 feet tall, making it one of the largest rockets in the world.
Blue Origin plans booster reuse test for NG-3
Because the next launch will be New Glenn’s third-ever spaceflight after its January 2025 debut, Blue Origin refers to the mission as NG-3.
This time, the rocket is due to help deliver to orbit broadband network satellites for AST SpaceMobile, a cellular broadband service provider. The BlueBird 7 satellite, with communication arrays as large as 2,400 square feet, would be the largest satellites ever commercially deployed in low-Earth orbit, AST SpaceMobile said in a press release.
In a major milestone for Blue Origin, the company plans to reuse the 188-foot-tall first stage booster used on the previous launch in November, named “Never Tell Me the Odds.” Launching the booster, which provides the initial burst of thrust at liftoff, for a second time would be a pivotal step toward allowing New Glenn to launch more frequently.
The capability to recover and reuse boosters is one competitor SpaceX has also long perfected with its 230-foot Falcon 9 – the most active rocket in the world.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@usatodayco.com. Subscribe to the free Florida TODAY newsletter.
