Blue Origin Announces "Super Heavy" New Glenn 9x4 Rocket With 70-Metric-Ton Payload Capacity
- MM24 News Desk
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Credit: Blue Origin
Blue Origin, the space company founded by Jeff Bezos, has unveiled plans for a "super heavy" version of its New Glenn rocket that will boost its low Earth orbit payload capacity by a massive 50 percent.
The new "New Glenn 9x4" variant, featuring more powerful engines and a wider fairing, signals the company's ambitious intent to compete for the most demanding national security and deep-space missions.
Just one week after New Glenn's spectacular second successful flight that delivered NASA's ESCAPADE Mars probes toward the Red Planet, Blue Origin is already pushing the boundaries of its heavy-lift launch system.
The announcement reveals a two-pronged strategy: incremental upgrades to the current rocket and the development of a dramatically more powerful version designed to dominate the upper end of the launch market. This move positions Blue Origin directly against other super-heavy-lift vehicles in development.
The enhanced standard version of New Glenn will see its capabilities grow mission by mission, beginning with the NG-3 flight scheduled for early next year. "The enhancements span propulsion, structures, avionics, reusability and recovery operations," stated Blue Origin in its official update.
The company reported that upgrades to both the BE-4 engines on the first stage and the BE-3U engines on the upper stage will significantly increase thrust, a critical factor for payload performance.
The first stage's thrust will jump from 3.9 million pounds to an impressive 4.5 million pounds, while the upper stage's power will rise from 320,000 pounds to 400,000 pounds.
These propulsion improvements are complemented by a new reusable fairing, a lower-cost tank design, and a more advanced thermal protection system, all aimed at increasing flight rates and reducing turnaround time between missions.
However, the true headline-grabber is the "super heavy" configuration, dubbed New Glenn 9x4. The name directly references its upgraded engine count: a first stage powered by nine BE-4 engines instead of seven, and a second stage featuring four BE-3U engines instead of two. This substantial increase in propulsion translates to a leap in payload capability from 50 tons (45 metric tons) to 77 tons (70 metric tons) to low Earth orbit.
This new capacity places New Glenn firmly in the super-heavy-lift category, capable of launching larger space telescopes, building next-generation space stations, or sending heavier payloads on interplanetary trajectories.
Furthermore, the rocket's payload fairing will expand to a colossal 28.5 feet (8.7 meters) in diameter, providing unprecedented volume for large satellites and space infrastructure components. This combination of raw power and vast internal space addresses two key constraints that have limited mission designs for decades.
The rapid succession of a successful flight and this major capability announcement demonstrates Blue Origin's accelerating momentum in the commercial launch sector. By building on the proven success of the current design while simultaneously planning its more powerful successor, the company is methodically executing a long-term vision for a reusable, heavy-lift workhorse.
This "super heavy" New Glenn promises to give NASA, the U.S. Space Force, and commercial satellite operators a powerful new option for getting the largest payloads ever conceived off the planet.
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