Blue Origin gets national security launch task order hours before New Glenn explosion

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman conducts an aerial inspection of Blue Origin's launch complex May 29 following a New Glenn rocket anomaly. Credit: @NASAAdmin

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force said May 29 it awarded Blue Origin a task order to launch a mission for the National Reconnaissance Office, and reaffirmed government support for the company’s New Glenn rocket following a launchpad explosion May 28.

The award was issued under the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 Lane 1 program, a contracting vehicle designed for national security missions that can accept greater launch risk than the military’s most demanding space launches.

The mission, known as NRO Task Order-4, calls for a single launch for the National Reconnaissance Office between the fourth quarter of 2027 and the first quarter of 2028 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The Space Force said the task order was awarded the afternoon of May 28, hours before a New Glenn launch vehicle exploded during a hot fire test at Cape Canaveral.