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3h ago

Solar Storm Forces Blue Origin to Delay New Glenn’s ESCAPADE Launch

The stand-down protects NASA’s ESCAPADE probes from solar-weather risks.

Darkness falls as a Blue Origin New Glenn rocket is prepped for launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station November 8, 2025. The rocket is scheduled to launch Sunday afternoon with NASA’s ESCAPADE mission. Craig Bailey/FLORIDA TODAY via USA TODAY NETWORK
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket sits on the launch pad, shortly before being delayed by weather on Earth and in space.
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands ready on Launch Complex 36 a few minutes before the launch was scrubbed at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket is fueled for launch with NASA's EscaPADE mission, carrying two satellites to orbit Mars, from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., November 9, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper

Overview

  • Blue Origin and NASA postponed the NG-2 launch after NOAA flagged severe G3–G4 geomagnetic activity that could disrupt spacecraft communications and navigation.
  • The mission had been targeting a Nov. 12 window from Cape Canaveral following a Nov. 9 scrub for terrestrial weather and range issues, including a cruise ship incursion.
  • Teams have not set a new date and are assessing opportunities based on space-weather forecasts and Eastern Range availability.
  • New Glenn is slated to carry two Rocket Lab–built ESCAPADE satellites for UC Berkeley and NASA to study how solar wind drives atmospheric loss at Mars after an initial loiter near Earth–Sun L2.
  • Blue Origin planned a downrange booster landing on the ship Jacklyn after a failed recovery on January’s debut flight, a milestone that factors into U.S. Space Force certification requiring two successful launches.