Sending Satellite to 'Wrong Address', Jeff Bezos' Rocket Causes Embarrassment

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Jeff Bezos’ rocket company, Blue Origin, has sent a satellite to the wrong point in Earth’s orbit. As a result, the satellite cannot be used and must be “dropped” until it burns up in Earth’s atmosphere.

AST SpaceMobile issued a statement last week regarding the launch operation of their BlueBird 7 satellite using Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket.

According to the company, the BlueBird 7 satellite was placed in a lower orbit than planned. The satellite successfully separated from the rocket and was “powered on.” However, the excessively low point made the satellite inoperable, requiring it to undergo a “de-orbit” process.

Fortunately, all costs arising from the failure have been insured. The company has also prepared the next BlueBird satellite, which can be launched next month.

AST SpaceMobile has contracts with several rocket companies to launch around 45 satellites by the end of 2026.

On the other hand, the BlueBird 7 failure to reach orbit stains Blue Origin’s reputation, especially their ambitions to compete with SpaceX in providing reusable rockets. The BlueBird launch was the launch of the reusable New Glenn rocket.

Moreover, Blue Origin is currently striving to become a launch contractor for NASA’s Artemis mission. NASA is pushing Blue Origin and SpaceX to develop technology that can place humans on the Moon before the end of US President Donald Trump’s term.

Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp even stated readiness to “move heaven and earth” to accelerate NASA’s Moon mission.

Blue Origin has been developing the New Glenn rocket for more than a decade. The New Glenn launch with commercial cargo is said to demonstrate the company’s confidence. On the other hand, SpaceX has only sent “dummy” cargo to test their giant Starship rocket in recent years.