Blue Origin is an American company that builds rockets and spacecraft. It is based in Kent, Washington. The company helps us explore space and travel beyond Earth.

Blue Origin makes two main rockets:

The New Shepard rocket takes people and experiments on short trips to the edge of space.
The New Glenn rocket is much larger. It can carry heavy payloads and satellites into orbit around Earth.

The company also builds powerful rocket engines. Some of these engines power Blue Origin's own rockets. Others are used by different space companies, like United Launch Alliance for their Vulcan Centaur rocket.

Blue Origin is also working on exciting future projects. These include:

Blue Moon, a spacecraft designed to land astronauts on the Moon for NASA's Artemis program.
Blue Ring, a platform for spacecraft to operate in orbit.
Orbital Reef, a future space station that will orbit Earth.

Jeff Bezos, who also founded Amazon, started Blue Origin in 2000. For many years, the company worked quietly on its projects. In 2015, the New Shepard rocket made its first successful uncrewed flight and landing. This was a big step! In 2021, Jeff Bezos himself flew on the first crewed New Shepard mission. He crossed the Kármán line, which is 100 kilometers (about 62 miles) above sea level and marks the edge of space.

In January 2023, Blue Origin delivered its first BE-4 rocket engine to United Launch Alliance. This engine is important for other rockets. On January 16, 2025, the New Glenn rocket successfully launched into orbit for the first time. This was a huge achievement for the company. On April 14, 2025, New Shepard completed its 11th human spaceflight. This mission was special because it carried an all-female crew of six people into space. In January 2026, Blue Origin decided to focus more on its Moon landing projects. Because of this, they paused tourism flights for the New Shepard rocket for a while.

Blue Origin's Journey to Space
- Developing New Rockets
- First Human Flights and Important Missions
Blue Origin's Launch Vehicles
- New Shepard: Trips to the Edge of Space
- New Glenn: Reaching Orbit and Beyond
Blue Moon: Landing on the Moon
Blue Origin's Rocket Engines
Blue Origin Facilities
Other Exciting Projects
Early Blue Origin Test Flights
NASA Partnerships and Funding
Funding Blue Origin's Dreams
Images for kids
See also

Blue Origin's Journey to Space

Blue Origin was started in 2000 by Jeff Bezos, who also created Amazon. For its first few years, the company worked quietly. In 2006, Blue Origin bought land in Van Horn, Texas. This area, called Launch Site One, became a key place for testing rockets. That same year, they launched their first test rocket, named Goddard, which flew to a height of 285 feet.

Developing New Rockets

Blue Origin began planning a rocket that could reach orbit before 2012. In September 2015, they officially announced their plans for this larger rocket. They revealed its name, "New Glenn", in September 2016. This rocket is much bigger than New Shepard. The New Glenn rocket successfully launched for the first time in January 2025.

The company likes to build on its successes step-by-step. They started with short trips to space (sub-orbital flights). Then they moved towards sending things into orbit. In 2014, Blue Origin began making rocket engines for other companies. They agreed to build the powerful BE-4 engine for United Launch Alliance (ULA). This engine powers ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket, which first launched in January 2024.

First Human Flights and Important Missions

On July 20, 2021, the New Shepard rocket made its first trip with people on board. This mission, called Blue Origin NS-16, carried Jeff Bezos, his brother Mark, Wally Funk, and Oliver Daemen. The flight lasted about 10 minutes and went past the Kármán line, the official boundary of space.

In 2024, Blue Origin won an important contract from the U.S. government. This contract allows the New Glenn rocket to launch satellites for national security. On November 13, 2025, Blue Origin launched its first mission for NASA. The New Glenn rocket sent two science satellites, called ESCAPADE, to study Mars' atmosphere. The rocket's first stage even landed safely on a ship named Jacklyn in the Atlantic Ocean.

Blue Origin's Launch Vehicles

Blue Origin has developed two main types of rockets for different space missions.

New Shepard: Trips to the Edge of Space

New Shepard is a special rocket designed for space tourism. It is named after Alan Shepard, the first American in space. This rocket is fully reusable, meaning it can fly again and again. It takes off and lands vertically, just like in science fiction movies!

The New Shepard rocket has two main parts:

A booster rocket that pushes it into space.
A crew capsule that carries people or cargo.

The capsule can hold up to six passengers. It can also carry scientific experiments. The booster rocket uses one BE-3PM engine. This engine sends the capsule to about 100.5 kilometers (62.5 miles) above Earth. This height is above the Kármán line, which is considered the edge of space. Passengers get to experience a few minutes of weightlessness before the capsule returns to Earth.

The capsule lands safely using three parachutes and a small rocket motor. The booster lands vertically back on its launchpad. This reusability helps make space travel more affordable. The New Shepard rocket is 19.2 meters (63 feet) long. It has successfully launched and landed many times. On February 25, 2025, Blue Origin completed its 10th space tourism mission. It sent six paying passengers on a suborbital flight.

New Glenn: Reaching Orbit and Beyond

New Glenn is a much larger rocket. It is designed to carry heavy payloads into orbit. This rocket is named after John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth. Design work for New Glenn started in 2012. It successfully launched for the first time in January 2025.

The New Glenn rocket is 7 meters (23 feet) wide. Its first stage is powered by seven powerful BE-4 engines. It has a very large payload fairing, which is the nose cone that protects satellites. This fairing is big enough to hold more cargo than most other commercial rockets.

Like New Shepard, the first stage of New Glenn is also designed to be reusable. Blue Origin is even exploring ways to make the second stage reusable too. In 2024, the U.S. Space Force gave Blue Origin funding to see if New Glenn could launch important national security satellites. On January 16, 2025, New Glenn made its first successful launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. It placed a test satellite, called Blue Ring Pathfinder, into orbit.

NASA also chose the New Glenn rocket for a mission called ESCAPADE. On November 13, 2025, New Glenn launched two spacecraft to study Mars' atmosphere. The rocket's first stage landed successfully on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

Blue Moon: Landing on the Moon

Blue Moon is a special lunar lander designed by Blue Origin. It was first shown to the public in May 2019. This lander can carry a lot of cargo to the Moon's surface. It can also be designed to carry astronauts.

Blue Origin worked with other companies like Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman on the Blue Moon project. They proposed it for NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon. While SpaceX won the first contract, Blue Origin later received a separate contract from NASA in 2023.

The Blue Moon lander uses a special engine called the BE-7 engine. On May 19, 2023, NASA officially chose Blue Origin to develop and test the Blue Moon system. This system will be used for the Artemis V mission. This mission will help us explore the Moon and prepare for future trips to Mars. The contract includes an uncrewed test mission. A crewed Moon landing is planned for 2029. In mid-2024, Blue Origin successfully tested the thrusters for an early version of the Blue Moon lander.

Blue Origin's Rocket Engines

Blue Origin designs and builds its own rocket engines. These engines are the heart of their rockets.

BE-1 Engine

The BE-1 was Blue Origin's very first engine. It was a simple engine that used peroxide fuel. It produced about 2,000 pounds of thrust.

BE-2 Engine

The BE-2 engine was more powerful. It used two types of fuel: kerosene and peroxide. This engine could produce about 31,000 pounds of thrust.

BE-3 Engine Family

The BE-3 is a family of engines that use liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. There are two main versions:

The BE-3U is used in the second stage of the New Glenn rocket. It produces 710 kilonewtons (160,000 pounds) of thrust.
The BE-3PM powers the New Shepard rocket. It produces 490 kilonewtons (110,000 pounds) of thrust. This engine can also be throttled down. This means it can reduce its power for controlled landings.

BE-4 Engine

The BE-4 is a very powerful engine. It uses liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas as fuel. It can produce 550,000 pounds of thrust.

Blue Origin agreed to develop the BE-4 engine for United Launch Alliance (ULA) in 2014. This engine replaced an older Russian-made engine in ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket. Two BE-4 engines power the first stage of the Vulcan Centaur. The first two BE-4 engines were delivered to ULA in October 2022. The Vulcan Centaur rocket, powered by BE-4 engines, successfully launched for the first time on January 8, 2024.

BE-7 Engine

The BE-7 engine is being developed for the Blue Moon lunar lander. It uses liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. This engine produces about 10,000 pounds of thrust. Its first tests happened in June 2019.

Pusher Escape Motor

Blue Origin also developed a special safety system for the New Shepard crew capsule. This "pusher escape motor" helps the capsule quickly move away from the rocket if there's an emergency during launch.

Blue Origin Facilities

Blue Origin has several important locations across the United States.

Headquarters and Rocket Development

The company's main headquarters is in Kent, Washington. This is where much of the rocket development and design work happens. Blue Origin has been expanding its facilities in the Seattle area since 2016. In 2020, they opened a new headquarters and research facility called the O'Neill Building.

Launch Site One in Texas

Corn Ranch, also known as Launch Site One, is located about 30 miles north of Van Horn, Texas. This site is used for launching and landing the New Shepard sub-orbital rocket. It also has several test stands for rocket engines. These stands can test the BE-3 and BE-4 engines at full power.

Blue Engine Manufacturing in Alabama

In Huntsville, Alabama, Blue Origin has a large facility called "Blue Engine." This is where they build many of their powerful BE-4 and BE-3U engines. The company is planning to expand this facility even further.

Orbital Launch Site in Florida

Blue Origin has an Orbital Launch Site at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. They converted Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) to launch the New Glenn rocket into orbit. This facility, completed in 2020, is used for building and testing New Glenn rockets.

The site also includes a refurbishment facility. This is where the reusable first stage of the New Glenn rocket is prepared for its next flight after landing on a ship. Large parts of the New Glenn rocket are manufactured nearby in Exploration Park. Blue Origin also plans to build a New Glenn launch pad at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This will allow them to launch satellites into polar orbit.

Other Exciting Projects

Blue Origin is working on many other projects to advance space exploration.

Blue Ring: Space Logistics

The Blue Ring vehicle was announced in October 2023. It is designed to handle orbital logistics and delivery. Think of it as a space truck that can move things around in orbit. In March 2024, Blue Origin partnered with the United States Space Force to test Blue Ring's abilities on a mission called DarkSky-1.

Orbital Reef: A Space Station for Everyone

Blue Origin and its partners, including Sierra Space and Boeing, are designing a commercial space station called Orbital Reef. They received $130 million from NASA to start this project. Orbital Reef is imagined as an expandable business park in space. It will be a place for tourism, research, and manufacturing.

The station is designed to be modular, meaning new parts can be added easily. It will be able to dock with almost any spacecraft, including SpaceX Dragon 2, Soyuz (spacecraft), and Boeing Starliner. In 2024, NASA increased its funding for Orbital Reef by $42 million.

Nuclear Rocket Program

NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency are exploring new ways to travel through space faster and more efficiently. One idea is to use nuclear fission to power spacecraft. Nuclear-powered systems could be lighter and more efficient than traditional ones. This could greatly reduce the cost and time for long space missions.

Blue Origin received $2.9 million from DARPA to help design components for nuclear spacecraft. They are also part of a team developing a long-range nuclear propulsion system called PADME.

Space Technology: Using Moon Resources

Blue Origin is working on a project called "Blue Alchemist." This project aims to use the dust and rocks found on the Moon, called lunar regolith, to create solar cells. These solar cells could provide unlimited electricity on the Moon. The process also creates oxygen, which is useful for breathing and rocket fuel.

In 2023, NASA awarded Blue Origin $35 million for their work on lunar regolith. Blue Origin hopes to be the first company to harvest natural resources from the Moon.

TeraWave: Global Internet from Space

In January 2026, Blue Origin announced a new communications satellite system called TeraWave. This system will use over 5,000 satellites orbiting close to Earth. It will also have 128 satellites in a higher orbit. Together, these satellites will provide fast internet access around the world.

Project Sunrise: Orbital AI Data Centers

In March 2026, Blue Origin proposed an ambitious project called Project Sunrise. They filed a request to deploy a huge network of 51,600 satellites. These satellites would form an "orbital AI data center" system in space.

Early Blue Origin Test Flights

Before 2025, Blue Origin conducted many test flights to develop its rockets. These early tests helped the company learn and improve its technology.

Charon Test Vehicle

Blue Origin's very first test vehicle was named Charon. It was powered by four jet engines, not rockets. Charon flew on March 5, 2005, to test how the company's guidance systems worked. Today, Charon is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.

Goddard Rocket

The next test vehicle was named Goddard. It was the first rocket-powered vehicle from Blue Origin. Goddard first flew on November 13, 2006. It used the company's first rocket engine, the BE-1.

PM2 Test Vehicle

Another early test vehicle, called PM2, had two flights in 2011. It was powered by five BE-2 engines. One of these flights, on August 24, 2011, unfortunately failed. The vehicle was lost during the test. However, these tests provided valuable information for future rocket designs.

NASA Partnerships and Funding

Blue Origin has worked closely with NASA on several projects.

In 2009, NASA gave Blue Origin $3.7 million to develop ideas for future human spaceflight. This included working on a reusable "pusher" escape system for crew capsules. It also involved designing a strong, lightweight cabin for astronauts.

NASA continued to support Blue Origin with $22 million in 2011. This funding helped Blue Origin develop its orbital Space Vehicle. It also sped up the development of the BE-3 engine.

In 2013, Blue Origin tried to lease Launch Complex 39A (LC39A) from NASA. They wanted to share the launchpad with other companies. However, NASA chose SpaceX for an exclusive lease of the complex in 2014.

Blue Origin later bid for NASA's Human Landing System (HLS) contract for the Artemis program. They led a team called the "National Team." In 2020, they won a $579 million contract to start developing a lunar lander. However, NASA later chose SpaceX for the main HLS contract in 2021.

Despite this, Blue Origin received over $275 million from NASA in early 2021 for lunar lander projects and sub-orbital research. In 2022, Blue Origin submitted a second bid for NASA's Sustaining Lunar Development (SLD) program. This time, they led a new "National Team" with partners like Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

On May 19, 2023, NASA officially contracted Blue Origin to develop the Blue Moon landing system. This system will be used for the Artemis V mission. The contract is worth $3.4 billion. It includes an uncrewed test mission and a crewed Moon landing planned for 2029. In August 2025, Blue Origin also proposed a Mars Telecommunications Orbiter (MTO) mission for NASA. This orbiter would help with Mars Sample Return missions and future crewed missions to Mars.

Funding Blue Origin's Dreams

Blue Origin is a private company, and much of its funding comes from its founder, Jeff Bezos. By July 2014, Jeff Bezos had invested over $500 million into the company. By 2017, he was selling about $1 billion worth of Amazon stock each year to invest in Blue Origin.

The company also receives funding from the U.S. government. In 2019, the United States Air Force gave Blue Origin $181 million for rocket development. Blue Origin is also eligible for grants from the U.S. Space Force. In November 2022, an agreement was made that allows the New Glenn rocket to compete for national security launch contracts.

In 2023, Blue Origin's CEO, Bob Smith, mentioned that the company had "hundreds of millions in revenue" and "billions of dollars in orders." Blue Origin is also part of the DARPA Lunar Programs, studying how to operate on the Moon's surface.