Amna Nawaz
Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos

Blue Origin rocket explodes during launch pad test

Posted

May 29, 2026

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A Jeff Bezos-backed Blue Origin rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Thursday evening.

The New Glenn rocket was undergoing an engine fire test to eventually be able to deliver 48 low-orbit Amazon Leo satellites for the companies’ internet service.

“It’s too early to know the root cause but we’re already working to find it,” Bezos wrote in an X post after the explosion.

No injuries were reported, but homes shook in nearby Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach according to residents.

Earlier this week, NASA awarded Blue Origin a contract to deliver NASA payloads to the moon as part of the Moon Base missions.

“Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote via X. “We will provide information on any impacts to the Artemis and Moon Base programs as it becomes available.”

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Guests & Subjects Covered

Cape Canaveral Fla ThursdayThe New GlennAmazon LeoCape CanaveralCocoa BeachBlue OriginMoon BaseNASA Administrator Jared Isaacman

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