Blue Origin’s Mars-related New Glenn launch is already over. New Glenn mission NG-2 lifted off at 3:55 p.m. EST on November 13, 2025, from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The official Blue Origin NG-2 mission page has the webcast replay.
The vehicle did not travel to Mars. New Glenn deployed NASA’s twin ESCAPADE spacecraft, which are taking an indirect route and are expected to reach Mars in September 2027. The spacecraft, not the rocket, are the Mars-bound vehicles.
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Watch the official launch replay
Use Blue Origin’s NG-2 mission page for the official “Replay: New Glenn Mission NG-2 Webcast.” It is an archived broadcast, not a live launch scheduled for today.
For a second account of the flight and its science, NASA’s launch recap describes the ascent, booster recovery and early spacecraft operations. NASA’s mission release explains the route to Mars and the scientific objectives.
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What launched on New Glenn NG-2?
The payload was NASA’s ESCAPADE mission, short for Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers. It consists of two spacecraft, commonly called Blue and Gold. Rocket Lab built the spacecraft, while the University of California, Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory leads the mission. A separate Viasat communications-technology demonstration supporting NASA’s Communications Services Project also flew on the mission.
NASA’s prelaunch description called ESCAPADE the first multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to Mars. That wording refers to the coordinated science mission; it does not mean New Glenn itself is a Mars vehicle. See NASA’s prelaunch mission description.
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Why launch in 2025 if Mars arrival is in 2027?
ESCAPADE is using a “loiter” trajectory rather than heading straight from Earth toward Mars. After deployment, the spacecraft travel to a distant orbit near the Sun–Earth L2 region, about one million miles from Earth. They are expected to loop back toward Earth in November 2026 and use Earth’s gravity to slingshot onto the Mars-bound leg.
Most Mars missions wait for a relatively brief favorable alignment between Earth and Mars, which occurs roughly every two years. ESCAPADE’s approach lets a spacecraft launch earlier, wait in space and depart when the geometry is right. NASA says this concept could give some future planetary missions more flexibility, although it does not make every Mars mission possible at any time.
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What ESCAPADE will study at Mars
- How the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetosphere.
- How energetic solar particles contribute to the loss of the Martian atmosphere.
- How Martian space weather changes across time and location.
- Conditions that may affect future human explorers.
Blue and Gold are designed to make coordinated observations from different positions around Mars. NASA’s current plan places orbital arrival in September 2027, with the first science campaign planned to begin in June 2028 after orbit insertion and formation operations.
What happened during the launch?
- New Glenn lifted off from Launch Complex 36.
- The first stage separated and descended toward Blue Origin’s autonomous landing platform, Jacklyn, in the Atlantic Ocean.
- The second stage continued ascent using its two BE-3U engines.
- The payload fairing separated.
- The two ESCAPADE spacecraft deployed into their initial trajectory.
- Ground controllers established communications with both spacecraft later that evening.
NASA’s recap placed Jacklyn roughly 620 miles downrange in the Atlantic. Blue Origin reported that the reusable first stage landed successfully.
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How this mission fits New Glenn’s flight history
NG-2 was New Glenn’s second orbital mission. Its significance is specific: it launched NASA’s twin-spacecraft Mars science mission and demonstrated a reusable first-stage landing during that flight. It was not New Glenn’s first launch; the vehicle’s inaugural orbital mission was designated NG-1.
Do not confuse ESCAPADE with New Glenn’s later NG-3 mission. NG-3 launched on April 19, 2026, carrying AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite to low Earth orbit, not a Mars payload. Blue Origin’s NG-3 mission page covers that flight.
Blue Origin later reported a significant anomaly during an integrated New Glenn hotfire test on May 28, 2026, which damaged parts of Launch Complex 36. In its return-to-flight update, the company said it was rebuilding the site and intended to return New Glenn to flight by the end of 2026. That company target is separate from ESCAPADE’s already completed launch.
Mission timeline
| Milestone | Status or date | Source |
|---|---|---|
| New Glenn NG-2 launch | Completed November 13, 2025, at 3:55 p.m. EST | NASA |
| Earth-gravity assist | Expected November 2026 | NASA |
| Mars arrival | Expected September 2027 | NASA |
| First ESCAPADE science campaign | Planned June 2028 | NASA |
What to watch for now
- Launch video: the official Blue Origin NG-2 webcast replay.
- Flight details: NASA’s launch recap.
- Science and destination: NASA’s ESCAPADE overview.
NASA’s dates for the Earth flyby, Mars arrival and science operations are planning expectations, not guarantees. The next New Glenn flight should not be assumed to be another Mars mission; NASA’s 2026 New Glenn work is associated with testing and future lunar and Artemis operations, as described in its testing and Artemis update.
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