Blue Origin announced this morning that it has been given certification by NASA for Category 1 missions. A NASA Category 1 mission is a launch with a high risk, such as using a new rocket configuration or one with little flight history, and is an important step in the qualification process for higher categories and higher-risk missions.

With the classification, New Glenn is now certified by NASA to launch the Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE) mission, a flight slated for sometime this spring. Neither organization has yet commented on a more specific launch date.

Blue Origin’s CEO, Dave Limp, succinctly replied to the announcement on the X platform by saying, “Thank you, NASA, for the partnership.”

By achieving this qualification, Blue is now rated for Class D: High Risk Tolerance missions.

Class D: High risk tolerance missions, normally representing a lower priority mission with a medium to low complexity. Class D payloads may be launched on Risk Category 1 rockets or rockets that NASA has not certified. Other high-risk payload launch service options may be pursued through the NASA Flight Planning Board.

NASA Risk Classification Fact Sheet

Examples of past NASA Class D missions include CYGNSS (Pegasus XL,2016), NICER (Falcon 9, 2017), TROPICS (Electron, 2017), and MarCO (Atlas V-401, 2018).

Obviously, this is a first-step for Blue Origin, and it will obviously seek to attain certification to carry higher risk payloads in the future when New Glenn has a longer track record.