Beach view: Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket raised on LC-36 ahead of pre-launch testing

The last time this new 320+ foot-tall rocket was visible to the public eye was in March. Since then, Blue Origin has been preparing the rocket for its inaugural launch, which could yet happen before the end of the year.

The rocket, which recently saw the mating of the first and second stages, was raised at the company’s Launch Complex 36 (LC-36). The tower at LC-36 is visible along the northern shoreline from Brevard beaches, making it probably the most visible launch pad on the Space Coast and often the first place visitors look when they are here for a launch.

Blue Origin was founded by former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and is currently led by CEO Dave Limp.

Blue Origin’s rockets

The company also operates a suborbital vehicle known as New Shepard out of Van Horn, Texas. That single stage rocket mimics the flight of Alan Shepard, who was the first American in space. The vehicle lifts the spacecraft with experiments or paying spacefarers to space for minutes. Where it differs from Shepard’s Mercury-Redstone 3 rocket is that the New Shepard rocket can land and be reused.