Blue Origin has successfully launched its second heavy-lift New Glenn rocket, putting two small NASA satellites onto a long, looping course to Mars. The launch came three days late due to stormy weather on Earth and in space, but ultimately went off without a hitch.
The towering 321-foot-tall New Glenn rocket, powered by seven methane-burning main engines, lifted off from Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The rocket's first stage, nicknamed "Never Tell Me The Odds," featured a variety of upgrades to improve performance and successfully landed on a Blue Origin landing barge.
The New Glenn booster will be hauled back to Port Canaveral and refurbished before being readied for use on an upcoming New Glenn flight. This time around, the rocket flew itself to an on-target touchdown, prompting cheers and applause from Blue Origin workers.
Mars-bound for now, but not without a detour, NASA's ESCAPADE satellites were released to fly on their own 33 minutes after liftoff. The twin spacecraft are designed to answer key questions about the evolution of the Martian atmosphere, including how the solar wind and energetic electrons interact with the planet's thin atmosphere.
The probes will spend over a year in a kidney bean-shaped orbit out past the moon before heading back toward Earth and then on to Mars in September 2027. By passing within 600 miles of Earth in November 2027, they'll make velocity-boosting gravity assist flybys augmented by onboard propulsion to finally reach the Red Planet.
ESCAPADE is a relatively modest mission compared to other Mars missions, but its flexible approach could pave the way for future spacecraft to use similar trajectories. The mission will provide a stereo view of the processes involved in atmospheric escape from Mars and offer insights into how the solar wind affects the planet's climate.
The towering 321-foot-tall New Glenn rocket, powered by seven methane-burning main engines, lifted off from Launch Complex 36 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The rocket's first stage, nicknamed "Never Tell Me The Odds," featured a variety of upgrades to improve performance and successfully landed on a Blue Origin landing barge.
The New Glenn booster will be hauled back to Port Canaveral and refurbished before being readied for use on an upcoming New Glenn flight. This time around, the rocket flew itself to an on-target touchdown, prompting cheers and applause from Blue Origin workers.
Mars-bound for now, but not without a detour, NASA's ESCAPADE satellites were released to fly on their own 33 minutes after liftoff. The twin spacecraft are designed to answer key questions about the evolution of the Martian atmosphere, including how the solar wind and energetic electrons interact with the planet's thin atmosphere.
The probes will spend over a year in a kidney bean-shaped orbit out past the moon before heading back toward Earth and then on to Mars in September 2027. By passing within 600 miles of Earth in November 2027, they'll make velocity-boosting gravity assist flybys augmented by onboard propulsion to finally reach the Red Planet.
ESCAPADE is a relatively modest mission compared to other Mars missions, but its flexible approach could pave the way for future spacecraft to use similar trajectories. The mission will provide a stereo view of the processes involved in atmospheric escape from Mars and offer insights into how the solar wind affects the planet's climate.
! I'm totally stoked that they were able to overcome those weather challenges & still got the job done 
. That 'Never Tell Me The Odds' first stage is a total game-changer, btw - who needs upgrades when you've got that much talent? 
Those twin spacecraft are low-key geniuses 
. Who wouldn't want to explore the Martian atmosphere & figure out how solar wind affects the climate? 
The fact that they're paving the way for future missions with flexible trajectories is just, like, totally awesome 
those NASA satellites are going to be like, literally, whoa! Passing close to Earth to get that extra boost to reach Mars in September 2027 is insane 
I mean, it's not just about reaching Mars, but also the journey itself and what we can learn along the way. The fact that they're gonna provide a stereo view of atmospheric escape from Mars is super interesting 
i'm so hyped about this! blue origin is killing the game with their new glenn rocket 
. i mean, those escapade satellites are doing some pretty cool stuff too - it's like they're doing space science experiments in real time 
. what i love about this mission is that it's not just about launching a bunch of rockets into space, it's about figuring out the mysteries of mars and how we can use that knowledge to make humanity a multi-planetary species 
. i'm totes stoked that NASA's ESCAPADE satellites are finally on their way to Mars 
. those probes are gonna give us some serious intel on the Martian atmosphere, including how solar winds affect it 
. i mean, it's not like they're going for a full-on Mars colonization thing. but hey, every little bit counts, right? 
. 321 feet tall and powered by methane-burning engines? 
.
The fact that they made those NASA satellites fly solo for 33 minutes was insane! 
I'm literally freaking out over this! Blue Origin is on fire 
. I'm living for the fact that they flew themselves to an on-target touchdown 
. The upgrades on that rocket are everything 
It's gonna be fascinating to see those satellites take off in 2027 
. still, blue origin is all about innovating and pushing boundaries 
. i mean, understanding how mars' atmosphere works could be super valuable for future human missions 
. Who needs flashy rockets when you can have stealthy satellites? And I gotta give it up for NASA's understated approach, no fanfare just a plain ol' efficient mission 
. But honestly, who wouldn't want to explore Mars and figure out how the solar wind is like, "Hey, let me mess with your atmosphere some" 
I mean, they're gonna do some gravity assist flybys around Earth and then head back out into space... meanwhile, the Blue Origin rocket is just chillin' on its landing barge 
waiting for refurb 
. Like, what even is a delay in space exploration 
? Anywayz, I guess ESCAPADE's orbit might actually help future Mars missions... but still 
. Two NASA satellites ESCAPADE are on their way to Mars 
. They'll be flying around the moon for a year 
then back to Earth and then off to Mars in Sept 2027 
. This mission is all about understanding the Martian atmosphere 
and how it interacts with the solar wind 
. It's like, pretty cool 
for this mission ESCAPADE is gonna drop some major knowledge about the Martian atmosphere & its climate lol what's even more insane is that they flew the rocket all by itself to land without any human intervention 
maybe with a drone or something?
. I heard it was over a billion dollars for these two tiny satellites. That's like 100 times more than the cost of a new Mars rover! 
.
. Still, it's awesome that the rocket landed smoothly and even flew itself to a precise touchdown 
. Blue Origin's always pushing boundaries, and I love that about them 
. All in all, though, it's exciting to see private companies making strides in space exploration 
.