After a 24-second test of its engines, the New Glenn rocket is ready to fly

After a long day of stops and starts that stretched well into the evening, and on what appeared to be the company’s fifth attempt Friday, Blue Origin successfully ignited the seven main engines on its massive New Glenn rocket.

The test firing as fog built over the Florida coast marks the final major step in the rocket company’s campaign to bring the New Glenn rocket—a privately developed, super-heavy lift vehicle—to launch readiness. Blue Origin said it fired the vehicle’s engines for a duration of 24 seconds. They fired at full thrust for 13 of those seconds.

“This is a monumental milestone and a glimpse of what’s just around the corner for New Glenn’s first launch,” said Jarrett Jones,  senior vice president of the New Glenn program, in a news release. “Today’s success proves that our rigorous approach to testing–combined with our incredible tooling and design engineering–is working as intended.”

Completion of the dynamic hot-fire test sets up a historic moment for the company founded by Jeff Bezos nearly a quarter of a century ago, the firm’s first ever orbital launch attempt. It will occur from Launch Complex-36, at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

Blue Origin’s post-test update did not include a launch date, but based on flight advisory information, a no-earlier than launch date is likely to be January 6.

A license to fly

Friday was important for New Glenn’s debut mission in another way. Several hours before the test firing, the Federal Aviation Administration said it had issued a launch license for the rocket. The license allows Blue Origin to conduct orbital missions from Cape Canaveral with New Glenn, as well as to attempt first stage landings on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean. The license is valid for five years.

After years of waiting, the much-anticipated mission is finally coming together. The hot-fire test, taking place just two days after the Christmas holiday in the United States, reflects the urgency that Bezos has injected into his rocket company over the last 18 months. In the fall of 2023, Bezos ousted Bob Smith as chief executive of Blue Origin, and tapped a long-time Amazon executive, Dave Limp, to lead the company.