Blue Origin’s New Glenn 3 launch got the wrong address while delivering a satellite into Earth’s orbit.
New Glenn 3 took off from the Blue Origin launch base in Florida’s Cape Canaveral on Sunday morning, carrying a satellite by satellite company AST Space Mobile, which it aimed to deliver into low Earth orbit.
Blue Origin, owned by billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, gave updates during the launch on X, saying that liftoff went smoothly and that the rocket’s booster had returned to earth.
But in a post on X at about 9:40 a.m., more than two hours after New Glenn 3’s liftoff, Blue Origin said it had delivered the BlueBird7 satellite to the wrong place.
“The payload was placed into an off-nominal orbit,” the company said. “We are currently assessing and will update when we have more detailed information.”
A few hours later, in a press release on Sunday afternoon, AST SpaceMobile said that New Glenn 3 had placed the satellite in a “lower than planned orbit,” and it would not be able to operate as planned.
“While the satellite separated from the launch vehicle and powered on, the altitude is too low to sustain operations with its on-board thruster technology and will de-orbited,” the company said in the release.
AST SpaceMobile said that the satellite’s cost will be recovered from its insurance policy.
The company already has seven satellites in low Earth orbit, and it plans to have about 45 by the end of 2026. The satellites are key to developing AST SpaceMobile’s space-based cellular broadband network.
This is Blue Origin’s third New Glenn launch, following two last year. The company launches its New Shepard rocket more frequently, taking tourists and celebrities on short flights to the edge of space, including Katy Perry and Bezos’ partner, Lauren Sánchez.
Blue Origin and AST SpaceMobile did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
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