Blue Origin launches New Glenn rocket for second time in 2025

New Glenn in flight after launching on

Cape Canvaveral,FL., (November 13,2025) - Blue Origin marked a historic achievement on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at 3:55:01 PM EST (20:55:01 UTC), successfully launching its New Glenn rocket from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The mission delivered NASA’s ESCAPADE spacecraft while also accomplishing the first fully successful landing of New Glenn’s reusable first-stage booster.

Designated NG-2, the mission lifted off under clear conditions from Florida’s Space Coast as New Glenn’s seven BE-4 engines powered the vehicle into flight. Following a nominal ascent and stage separation, the upper stage continued on its planned trajectory to deploy ESCAPADE, while the first stage initiated a carefully timed sequence of burns to guide it back for recovery.

ESCAPADE—short for Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers—is a dual-spacecraft science mission led by NASA. The mission is designed to study how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment, offering new insight into atmospheric loss and the long-term evolution of the Red Planet.

After completing its boost phase, New Glenn’s first stage performed a controlled reentry, followed by precision guidance and landing burns. The booster touched down safely, marking the first time New Glenn has successfully completed a full launch-and-recovery profile. The landing validates the rocket’s reusable design, a central element of Blue Origin’s strategy to increase launch frequency while reducing costs.

Standing more than 300 feet tall, New Glenn is designed as a heavy-lift launch vehicle capable of supporting NASA science missions, large commercial payloads, and future national security launches. The NG-2 flight demonstrated both the vehicle’s payload delivery capability and its long-promised reusability.

With ESCAPADE on its way to Mars and the booster safely recovered, this launch represents a pivotal moment for Blue Origin. The success of New Glenn’s first landing moves the program into a new phase of operational maturity, positioning it as a serious contender in the next generation of reusable orbital launch systems.