Overview
- Blue Origin will increase New Glenn’s booster thrust from about 3.9 million lbf to 4.5 million lbf and raise total upper‑stage thrust from 320,000 lbf to 400,000 lbf.
- Enhancements include a reusable payload fairing, a lower‑cost tank design, and a higher‑performing reusable thermal protection system to speed turnaround.
- The company introduced New Glenn 9×4 with nine first‑stage engines and four on the upper stage, an 8.7‑meter fairing, and advertised lift of >70 t to LEO, >14 t direct to GEO, and >20 t to trans‑lunar injection.
- Upgrades will be phased in beginning with NG‑3; Blue Origin provided no firm launch dates, and reporting indicates the next flight could slip into 2026 with no debut timeline for 9×4.
- Recent test data cited by the company show BE‑4 engines reaching ~625,000 lbf on the stand with a target of ~640,000 lbf via propellant subcooling, and BE‑3U firings exceeding ~211,000 lbf per engine.