Exploding rocket casts doubts over Nasa's Moon plans

Exploding rocket casts doubts over Nasa's Moon plansJust nowShareSaveAdd as preferred on GooglePallab GhoshScience correspondentWatch the moment Blue Origin's rocket exploded during a test in FloridaThe fireball that lit up the sky over Florida's Kennedy Space Centre last night has put a big question mark over whether Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin space company can deliver on a string of commitments to Nasa in its efforts to send astronauts to the lunar surface and build a Moon base.Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded at about 2100 local time during a routine test of its engines.The 98m (322ft) rocket had been due to launch 48 satellites for Amazon's Leo broadband network, as early as 4 June.The explosion is obviously a big setback for the Leo network, which is struggling to be the main competitor for Elon Musk's SpaceX and its Starlink service. But the ramifications will go much further.The good news was that no-one was injured, despite the spectacular explosion."All personnel are accounted for and safe," Bezos wrote on X. "Very rough day, but we'll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It's worth it."But the blast which tore through Space Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) has caused extensive damage. Footage shows one of the pad's lightning protection towers toppling in the aftermath.LC-36 is the only facility in the world built to launch the New Glenn rocket. That means that until the launch pad is rebuilt and re-certified, Blue Origin has no way to fly its largest rocket - and analysts expect that to take months, not weeks.The setback comes just days after Nasa's administrator, Jared Isaacman, announced the first three missions of the agency's plans to build a lunar base - a project he billed as the start of a "permanent presence" at the Moon's south pole.The first, Moon Base 1, is due to be flown on Blue Origin's robotic Blue Moon Mark 1 "Endurance...