Blue Origin's Moon Rocket Explodes – US Media Fears America Falling Behind China in Moon Race

Blue Origin, the space company owned by Jeff Bezos, suffered a violent explosion during a "hot-fire test" of its New Glenn rocket on the evening of 28 May. The blast severely damaged both the rocket and the launch facility. Blue Origin is one of NASA's partners in its lunar program, and the incident threatens to further delay America's return to the Moon — handing China a strategic advantage in the space race.

Blue Origin rocket test ends in massive explosion. AP Photo

Enormous Blast Devastates Rocket and Launch Pad

The explosion tore through Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the evening of the 28th, as Blue Origin was conducting a routine pre-launch hot-fire test of the New Glenn rocket. The rocket detonated in a massive fireball. Local residents reported seeing the blaze from considerable distance, with the blast heard some 24 kilometers away — the scene likened to a "mini nuclear bomb."  

Kennedy Space Center, Florida. AP Photo

The New Glenn rocket had previously completed three successful flights and was scheduled for its fourth mission next month. The explosion appears to have completely destroyed the rocket. Blue Origin's launch facility — which cost $1 billion to build — will likely require extensive repairs. The company is currently investigating the cause of the accident but has yet to clarify the specific impact on its rocket program.

Aerospace analysts believe the explosion will set Blue Origin's development timeline back by at least a year. Space journalist Eric Berger put it bluntly: "This completely takes Blue Origin out of the Artemis picture for the next 12 months, most likely. All of those Moon Base missions, man, it’s bad."

NASA's Moon Program May Become Entirely Reliant on SpaceX

With Blue Origin's rocket program suffering a catastrophic blow, NASA's Artemis lunar program may now become wholly dependent on SpaceX's Starship. The reality is that Starship itself remains far from fully validated, with development facing enormous challenges of its own.

Just last week, Starship's Super Heavy booster malfunctioned and tumbled into the Gulf of Mexico during a test flight. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered SpaceX on the 27th to investigate the cause. SpaceX must now suspend all subsequent Starship test flights pending approval of the investigation's findings. Both of NASA's primary Artemis partners have their rocket programs on hold simultaneously.

The New Glenn rocket stands 98 meters tall and features a reusable first stage, designed to compete with SpaceX's Falcon family of rockets and Starship. It is a key component of NASA's Artemis architecture. Just two days before the accident — on 26 May — NASA had awarded Blue Origin a $188 million contract to carry out the "Lunar Base 1" mission, delivering the company's lunar lander to the Moon's surface.

Former Administrator Warned: America Highly Likely to Fall Behind China

Repeated setbacks in the development of rockets and lunar landers have pushed America's crewed Moon landing mission back time and again. The latest timeline now stands at 2028.

In September last year, Jim Bridenstine — who served as NASA Administrator from 2018 to 2021 — issued a stark warning before a US Senate hearing. "Unless something changes, it is highly unlikely the United States will beat China’s projected timeline to the Moon’s surface. Our complicated architecture requires a dozen or more launches in a short time frame, relies on very challenging technologies that have yet to be developed like cryogenic in-space refueling, and still needs to be human rated."

Current NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman acknowledged that the New Glenn explosion could affect the Artemis program but stressed that a detailed review would be needed. "Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult," he said. "We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets."

Meanwhile, China's Crewed Lunar Program Advances on Schedule

On 24 May, the Shenzhou-23 crewed spacecraft launched successfully. The spacecraft and space station combination completed their rendezvous and docking. The astronaut crew — which includes Hong Kong's first payload specialist, Lai Ka-ying — successfully entered the Tiangong space station, completing the 8th "space rendezvous" in Chinese spaceflight history.

Shenzhou-23 crewed spacecraft launches successfully. Screenshot from CCTV

On the evening of 29 May, the Shenzhou-21 astronaut crew successfully landed aboard the Shenzhou-22 crewed spacecraft at the Dongfeng landing site, marking a safe return. The three astronauts had entered China's space station on 1 November 2025 and spent 210 days in orbit. Their mission sets a new Chinese record for the longest single-crew stay aboard the station.

Shenzhou-23 astronaut crew successfully enters Tiangong. Screenshot from CCTV

Shenzhou-21 astronaut crew makes a safe return. Screenshot from CCTV

China plans to carry out a crewed lunar landing before 2030 and is making steady progress with no signs of any delay.

Deep Throat

** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **

Four months ago, US President Donald Trump launched what he called the "Peace Committee," pledging to raise $17 billion for Gaza's reconstruction. Today, the fund is empty. Despite ongoing US-Iran ceasefire negotiations and Israel's continued strikes on Palestinians, not a cent has been collected. Member states have pledged billions, yet the committee's Gaza reconstruction fund holds no cash. Legal and political uncertainty have left it paralyzed — and reconstruction indefinitely on hold.

Trump had declared the "Peace Committee" one of the "most impactful" international organizations ever created. The committee levied billions in "lifetime membership" fees on world leaders. Member states pledged contributions to its Gaza "relief programme," and the United States itself committed an additional $10 billion.

Four months ago, Trump launched his so-called "Board of Peace," promising to raise funds for Gaza's reconstruction.

The reality is stark. According to a Financial Times report published Wednesday, the World Bank fund established for the Peace Committee has yet to receive a single dollar. The report cited four sources, one of whom stated plainly: "Zero dollars have been deposited." A board spokesperson confirmed the committee had received donations — but said those funds were deposited directly into its JPMorgan Chase account, bypassing the World Bank entirely.

A Peace Committee official offered a defense: "a number of options were established to receive funding… at this point, contributors have opted to use other options." The critical difference, however, is that the JPMorgan Chase account carries no obligation to report its financial status to donors or board members. The official added that a financial report would be presented to the executive board — composed of Trump administration officials and other advisors — "at a time deemed appropriate."

The Peace Committee hit back on X, accusing the Financial Times of trying to "sow doubt about the commitment of the US and partners to the Board of Peace". The committee argued the report “cite just one of many funding mechanisms that to date has not been utilized by the donor community”. It nonetheless acknowledged receiving funds through other mechanisms.

Some contributions have trickled in through separate channels, though none are flowing freely. It’s reported that Morocco has donated approximately $20 million to fund the office of Nikolay Mladenov, the post-war Gaza "high representative," and to cover salaries for a Palestinian technocratic committee. The UAE separately allocated $100 million specifically to train a new Gaza police force — but those funds have been frozen, and the programme has yet to launch.

The US State Department has pledged to redirect approximately $1.2 billion in existing aid funding toward projects on the committee's agenda. None of it has been disbursed. A senior congressional aide made clear that not one dollar of these funds is managed by the Peace Committee — and the State Department has no intention of allowing it to be.

The Financial Times reported Wednesday that the fund has yet to receive a single dollar.

A congressional aide further revealed that the State Department had sought to transfer approximately $50 million directly to the committee — but has yet to release those funds. The State Department said it "supports the President's vision" and continues to assess how best to advance these goals using existing authorities, programmes, and interagency coordination.

The board has begun issuing tenders for security and reconstruction work in Gaza. But no contracts have been awarded. The reason is as basic as it is telling: no operations have commenced on the ground, because Hamas has not yet been disarmed.

Trump's original reconstruction plan was built on three pillars: disarm Hamas, withdraw Israeli forces from Gaza, and rebuild the territory. None of these objectives have advanced in any meaningful way. Two individuals familiar with Gaza planning confirmed that "not one US dollar" has been spent on reconstruction.

Reconstruction in Gaza has not begun — there is simply no money to do anything.

Dr. Bishara Bahbah — a prominent Palestinian-American scholar who assisted the Trump administration in negotiations with Hamas — put it bluntly: The committee has yet to conduct any work in Gaza due to a complete absence of funding. "They know that if they go to Gaza, people are going to flood to them to ask for assistance, and they have no tools, no means".

The board spokesperson acknowledged the committee has not yet addressed the service and logistics systems envisioned under the plan. The spokesperson's defense was an unusual one: "We’re not, like, hoarding money in a bank account and then awarding contracts for things that can’t be delivered."

The Peace Committee was formally launched in January, when Trump signed founding documents alongside representatives of more than a dozen countries and territories at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Trump himself serves as chair. The committee's founding executive board consists of seven members, predominantly American, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and presidential envoy Steve Witkoff. According to the US side, the Peace Committee will first address the Gaza situation before expanding to tackle "other conflicts."

The gap between ambition and action is immense. A joint assessment by the EU, the United Nations, and the World Bank estimates that Gaza's reconstruction will require at least $70 billion over the next ten years. Four months in, not a single dollar of reconstruction funding has reached Gaza — and no credible path to delivery is in sight.