BLUE ORIGIN ROCKET EXPLODES DURING TEST LAUNCH

Blue Origin’s ambitious New Glenn rocket program suffered a major setback Thursday night after the massive rocket exploded during a launchpad test at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The 322-foot rocket burst into a huge fireball during a “hot-fire” engine test, sending flames and smoke across the launch site and reportedly shaking nearby homes.

Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos called it a “very rough day” but vowed the company would rebuild and continue moving forward. Fortunately, all personnel were safely accounted for, and no injuries were reported.

The New Glenn rocket was preparing for its fourth launch later this summer, which would have carried Amazon’s Project Kuiper internet satellites into orbit to compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink network. The satellites were not onboard during the test.

Musk even offered support online, posting, “Rockets are hard.”

Officials from Blue Origin, NASA, and the U.S. Space Force are now investigating the cause of the explosion, which could delay future launches for months.