Safety officials finally have a good idea of what a big rocket explosion can do

Real world

Overpressure from the Blue Origin blast shattered windows at a hangar about a mile away from the pad.

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket erupts in a fireball at Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.

Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now

Last week’s explosion of a New Glenn rocket at Cape Canaveral, Florida, was clearly a setback for Blue Origin and NASA, but it was a learning experience for safety officials looking to open up the spaceport to hundreds more launches per year.