Blue Origin Identifies BE-4 Engine Valve Issue Behind New Glenn Pad Explosion; Blue Moon Mark 1 Slips to Q1 2027

Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp said the company traced the May 28, 2026 New Glenn static-fire explosion at LC-36 to an issue with the main oxygen valve on one of the rocket's seven first-stage BE-4 engines. Blue Origin is making small modifications to the valve that can be retrofitted to existing engines, with updated hardware expected to be ready by the end of August 2026, alongside a parallel fault-tree analysis. As a result of the investigation and pad repair timeline, the debut flight of the Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar cargo lander — originally targeted for late summer 2026 as part of NASA's Moon Base I delivery — has slipped to Q1 2027 at the earliest, pending New Glenn's return to flight before year-end 2026.