Blue Origin rocket grounded after satellite 'mishap'

The firm founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos is investigating the failed launch. Blue Origin rocket grounded after satellite 'mishap' Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket taking off from a Florida launchpad with a hazy blue sky behind it. Blue Origin's newest rocket has been grounded after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered an investigation into a "mishap" involving the failed launch of a satellite. The company, founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, attempted to place a satellite from AST SpaceMobile using its New Glenn rocket but was unable to get it as far into orbit as intended. Blue Origin's chief executive Dave Limp said the failure was caused by a lack of "sufficient thrust" in an engine. AST SpaceMobile's share price fell by more than 6% on Monday. Limp said: "We clearly didn't deliver the mission our customer wanted, and our team expects." Blue Origin is investigating the incident, which happened on Sunday, with oversight from the FAA. A spokesperson for the authority said: "The FAA is requiring Blue Origin to conduct a mishap investigation. "The FAA will oversee the Blue Origin-led investigation, be involved in every step of the process and approve Blue Origin's final report, including any corrective actions." Limp said the investigation will allow Blue Origin to "l​​earn from the data and implement the improvements needed to quickly return to flight operations." The FAA will determine based on the investigation findings when New Glenn can be launched again. Sunday's operation was only the third flight for the New Glenn rocket. Blue Origin was planning on a dozen launches this year. The rocket was carrying an AST satellite intended for low earth orbit that would be used for mobile phone connectivity. Since New Glenn did not drop the satellite as far into orbit as it needed to go, it will be unusable. AST said Sunday that the loss will be covered by insurance, but did not say how much it would cost. Satellites offering consumers and companies internet access, even in typically difficult to access areas and terrains, are starting to become a more popular enterprise for tech companies. Blue Origin said earlier this year it would launch thousands of such satellites into low-earth orbit as part of a new project called TerraWave. Blue Origin said earlier this year it would launch into low-earth orbit as part of a new project called TerraWave. Amazon is also expanding in the space, having just acquired a satellite manufacturer and operator for $11b (£8.5bn) in order to build up its own project, called Leo. Amazon is also expanding in the space, having just and operator for $11b (£8.5bn) in order to build up its own project, called Leo. Both projects appear to be playing catch up to Starlink, the Elon Musk-owned company that already has several thousand operating satellites in orbit offering connectivity to consumers. Starlink is a significant part of SpaceX, the Musk company that is expected to go public this year in what could be a record-breaking stock market listing. Starlink is a significant part of SpaceX, the Musk company that is expected in what could be a record-breaking stock market listing. SpaceX founder Elon Musk wears a dark t-shirt with white lettering reading "Occupy Mars" next to a picture of a small red planet Elon Musk's SpaceX set to be worth $1 trillion with planned public listing A rocket taking off from a launchpad with the aim of putting an Amazon Leo satellite in low-earth orbit Amazon to spend $11bn on satellite firm in growing Starlink rivalry Amazon's founder Jeff Bezos speaks during the American Business Forum at the Kaseya Center in Miami on 6 November, 2025. He is wearing a dark suit jacket and white open-neck light blue shirt. Bezos' Blue Origin announces satellite rival to Musk's Starlink Amazon wants to get thousands more satellites into orbit to offer internet and mobile services. A number of firms hope to use SaxaVord Spaceport in Unst as a launch site for commercial rockets. Europe lags far behind the US and China in orbital space launches, but new facilities are opening up. 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