What engines does New Glenn use?

Its first stage is powered by seven Blue Origin BE-4 engines burning liquefied natural gas (methane) and liquid oxygen — the same engine that also powers ULA's Vulcan Centaur.

Is New Glenn reusable?

Yes — the first stage is designed to land on a seagoing platform downrange and be refurbished and reflown, similar in concept to Falcon 9's booster recovery.

Why is New Glenn's fairing so big?

New Glenn uses a 7-metre-diameter payload fairing, wider than most rockets, giving it room for unusually large or bulky satellites and multi-payload stacks.

Rockets

Heavy-lift launch vehicle · Blue Origin

New Glenn

A two-stage heavy-lift rocket with a reusable first stage and a wide 7-metre payload fairing.

OperationalBlue Origin

Total launches

66.7%

Success rate

Successful

Failures

Overview

About New Glenn

New Glenn is Blue Origin's orbital heavy-lift launch vehicle, named after Mercury astronaut John Glenn. Its first stage is powered by seven BE-4 engines burning liquid methane and oxygen and is designed to land on a seagoing platform for reuse. A distinctive feature is its 7-metre-diameter payload fairing — wider than most rockets — giving it generous volume for large satellites.

After debuting in January 2025, New Glenn entered service carrying NASA science payloads and commercial satellites, including Blue Origin's own and Amazon's Project Kuiper broadband constellation.

Cadence