New Glenn vs. H3

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Setting the Stage

The global launch industry is in a period of intense change. For decades, access to space was the domain of national governments, using rockets that were reliable but extraordinarily expensive. The arrival of commercial competition, most notably from SpaceX and its reusable Falcon 9 rocket, has completely altered the market. This new landscape demands not just reliability, but also cost-effectiveness and a high launch rate.

Into this dynamic environment, two major new launch vehicles have entered service, representing two starkly different philosophies for succeeding in the modern space economy. From the United States comes New Glenn, a privately-funded, reusable-first heavy-lift giant from Blue Origin. From Japan comes the H3, a government-backed, modular, and expendable workhorse built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

Both rockets are now operational, having overcome significant development challenges. They are both competing for lucrative commercial satellite contracts, national security missions, and government science payloads. Their head-to-head comparison isn’t just about hardware; it’s about a fundamental disagreement on the best way to secure access to orbit in the 21st century.

The Challenger from America: Blue Origin’s New Glenn

Blue Origin, the aerospace company founded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, operates on a long-term vision. Its motto, “Gradatim Ferociter,” translates to “Step by Step, Ferociously.” This philosophy was evident in its first rocket, the suborbital New Shepard, which patiently and methodically mastered the art of vertical propulsive landing and reuse. New Glenn is the second, ferocious step: a massive orbital launch vehicle designed from the ground up to be reusable.

The Vision and the Long Road

The development of New Glenn has been a marathon, not a sprint. Announced in 2016, the rocket’s debut was pushed back multiple times, largely due to the immense challenge of developing its main engines. This methodical timeline is a feature of Blue Origin’s strategy, which is less about meeting quarterly projections and more about building a lasting, heavy-lift infrastructure for a future where, in Bezos’s vision, millions of people are living and working in space.

This long-term patience is funded by private capital, giving the company the ability to solve complex engineering problems without the pressure of a fixed government contract. The most significant of these problems was the rocket’s powerplant.

New Glenn’s Architecture

New Glenn is an imposing, two-stage heavy-lift rocket standing approximately 98 meters (322 feet) tall. Its design is dominated by two key features: its reusable first stage and its massive payload fairing.

The Reusable First Stage

The first stage of New Glenn is the core of its business model. It is designed to be recovered, refurbished, and flown again, with a goal of at least 25 missions per booster. This reusability is intended to dramatically lower the cost-per-flight.

This stage is powered by seven BE-4 engines, which are themselves a major engineering achievement. The BE-4 is a powerful, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine that burns a propellant combination known as methalox: liquid methane (LNG) and liquid oxygen (LOX).

The choice of methane is deliberate. Unlike the rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) used on many rockets, methane burns much cleaner, leaving behind no “coking,” or soot residue. This cleanliness is a major benefit for reusability, as it drastically reduces the time and effort needed to clean and refurbish the engines between flights. Methane is also dense and high-performing, offering a good balance of power and efficiency.

The development of the BE-4 was a notoriously difficult and lengthy process that was the primary cause of New Glenn’s delays. However, its completion was a huge milestone, not just for Blue Origin but for the entire American launch industry. The same BE-4 engine also powers the first stage of the Vulcan Centaur rocket from United Launch Alliance (ULA), creating a complex relationship where Blue Origin is both a competitor and a critical supplier to ULA.

After stage separation, the New Glenn booster performs a series of engine burns to slow itself down from hypersonic speeds, deploys stabilizing fins, and executes a precise propulsive landing on a moving Landing Platform Ship named Jacklyn.

The High-Performance Upper Stage

While the first stage is reusable, New Glenn’s second stage is expendable. This upper stage is what pushes the payload into its final orbit. It is powered by two BE-3U engines, which are a vacuum-optimized variant of the engine that powers the New Shepard capsule.

In a departure from the first stage’s methane, the upper stage uses a high-energy propellant combination: liquid hydrogen (LH2) and liquid oxygen (LOX). Liquid hydrogen is the most efficient chemical rocket fuel available, providing a very high specific impulse. This gives the upper stage the performance needed to deliver heavy payloads to demanding orbits, like geostationary transfer orbit or even to the Moon.

The 7-Meter Fairing

One of New Glenn’s biggest selling points is its enormous payload fairing, the nose cone that protects a satellite during launch. The fairing has a diameter of 7 meters (23 feet). This is substantially larger than the 5-meter class fairings that have been the industry standard for years.

This volume is, in many cases, more important than raw mass-to-orbit. Modern satellites, especially large communications and national security spacecraft, are often “volume-limited” rather than “mass-limited.” New Glenn’s vast fairing allows for the launch of massive, fully-assembled satellites that would not fit on other rockets, or for the “co-manifesting” of numerous large satellites in a single flight, which is key to its market strategy. Blue Origin also has plans to recover and reuse the fairing halves, further reducing launch costs.

Development and Entry into Service

Blue Origin built a massive rocket factory in Exploration Park, just outside the gates of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It also heavily invested in rebuilding the historic Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) at Cape Canaveral into a modern launch site tailored for New Glenn.

After years of testing, the first New Glenn rocket, mission NG-1, stood on the pad in January 2025. The maiden flight on January 16, 2025, was a partial success. The rocket successfully lifted off, the seven BE-4 engines performed, and the upper stage reached orbit, deploying its test payload. However, as the company had cautioned was a possibility, the first-stage booster was lost during its ambitious, first-ever landing attempt. Reaching orbit on a maiden flight is a major accomplishment, and the mission provided invaluable data.

The true validation came just days ago, on November 13, 2025. The second New Glenn launch, NG-2, carried NASA’s twin ESCAPADE probes, destined for Mars. This flight was a resounding success. The rocket performed flawlessly, the probes were sent on their way, and the first-stage booster executed a perfect landing on the Jacklyn landing ship. This event, proving the rocket’s full reusability, has immediately made New Glenn a top-tier competitor in the global launch market.

Mission and Market

New Glenn is a heavy-lift rocket, capable of lifting 45 metric tons (45,000 kg) to low Earth orbit (LEO) and 13.6 metric tons (13,600 kg) to GTO, all in its reusable configuration. This power places it in the upper echelon of active rockets.

Its primary and most important customer is, in effect, its sister company: Amazon. New Glenn is the anchor vehicle for deploying Project Kuiper, Amazon’s satellite internet constellation. Amazon has procured one of the largest commercial launch contracts in history, spreading launches across ULA, Arianespace, and its own Blue Origin. New Glenn’s 7-meter fairing was designed with the Project Kuiper satellites in mind. This “captive customer” provides a guaranteed launch manifest that will help the company scale up its launch cadence and operations.

Beyond Kuiper, New Glenn is now a prime competitor for other major contracts. It has already launched a NASA science mission and is a key part of the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program to deliver landers to the Moon. It is also actively working to be certified for the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program, which would allow it to launch high-value satellites for the U.S. Space Force.

The Flagship from Japan: The H3 Rocket

While New Glenn is a product of private ambition, the H3 rocket is a product of national strategy. It was developed by MHI and JAXA as the successor to Japan’s previous generation of rockets, the highly successful but very expensive H-IIA and H-IIB.

A Legacy of Reliability

The H-IIA built a global reputation for its precision and reliability. It was a “boutique” launcher, often trusted with delicate, deep-space science missions like Hayabusa2 that required pinpoint accuracy. However, this reliability came at a high cost, with launch prices far exceeding those of newer, commercial competitors.

The H3 program was initiated with a clear directive: maintain the H-IIA’s reliability while dramatically cutting the cost per launch. The goal was to create a rocket that could not only serve Japan’s national needs but also compete on price in the crowded international market. The rocket is expendable, with its design focused on manufacturing efficiency and flexibility rather than on the high-risk, high-reward path of reusability.

H3’s Design Philosophy: Modularity

The H3’s core design philosophy is modularity. It is not a single rocket but a family of rockets built from a common set of components. This allows MHI to “right-size” the rocket for each specific payload, offering customers a tailored launch at an optimized price.

This modularity is expressed in its naming convention, such as “H3-24L.”

• The first digit (“2”) refers to the number of first-stage main engines, either two or three.
• The second digit (“4”) refers to the number of strap-on solid rocket boosters, which can be zero, two, or four.
• The letter (“L”) refers to the size of the payload fairing.

This “à la carte” system means that a small satellite going to LEO doesn’t have to pay for the same rocket as a massive satellite going to GTO.

H3’s Architecture

The H3 is a two-stage rocket that, in its most common configurations, stands about 63 meters (207 feet) tall, with a diameter of 5.27 meters.

The Core Stage and Boosters

The H3’s first stage is powered by a brand-new, cutting-edge engine: the LE-9. Like the BE-4, the LE-9 was a massive technological hurdle and a source of significant delays for the program. It is a highly advanced staged combustion cycle engine, and like the H-IIA before it, it burns the hyper-efficient combination of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

The LE-9 represents the pinnacle of Japanese liquid hydrogen engine technology. However, hydrogen’s benefits in space (high efficiency) are offset by its challenges on the ground. As the lightest element, its liquid form is not very dense and must be kept at extremely cold, or “deep cryogenic,” temperatures, which adds complexity to ground operations.

To augment the core stage’s thrust at liftoff, the H3 uses new SRB-3 solid rocket boosters. These are simpler, less expensive, and more powerful than the boosters used on the H-IIA. By adding zero, two, or four of these SRBs, MHI can easily scale the rocket’s power.

The Proven Upper Stage

The H3’s second stage is powered by a single LE-5B-3 engine. This is an upgraded version of the extremely reliable LE-5 engine that flew on the H-IIA and H-IIB. By reusing a proven, flight-tested design for the upper stage, JAXA and MHI reduced risk and development costs, focusing their efforts on the all-new first stage. This upper stage also burns liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

Development and Entry into Service

The H3’s path to operation was fraught with challenges. The maiden flight, H3-TF1, took place on March 7, 2023. The rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center seemingly without issue, and the first stage and boosters performed as expected. However, after stage separation, the second stage’s main engine failed to ignite. The rocket and its primary payload, the ALOS-3 Earth-observation satellite, were lost in a mission failure.

This was a devastating blow to the program and to Japanese national prestige. JAXA and MHI immediately convened an investigation. They traced the failure to an electrical issue in the second stage.

After nearly a year of rigorous investigation, redesign, and testing, the H3 was ready to fly again. The second test flight, TF2, launched on February 17, 2024. This flight was a “make-or-break” moment for the program. This time, the rocket performed perfectly. The second stage ignited, and the rocket successfully delivered its payloads to orbit. The success triggered a wave of relief and celebration, validating the fixes and the rocket’s fundamental design.

Since that critical 2024 success, the H3 has rapidly transitioned into an operational workhorse. It has already had a busy launch manifest.

• July 2024: Successfully launched the ALOS-4 Earth-observation satellite.
• November 2024: Successfully launched an X-band defense communications satellite.
• February 2025: Successfully launched the QZS-6 satellite for Japan’s “Michibiki” satellite navigation system.
• October 2025: Achieved a major milestone by successfully launching the first HTV-X cargo-resupply mission to the International Space Station.

This steady cadence of successful launches in 2024 and 2025 has rebuilt confidence in the H3. It is now fully operational and has taken over the role as Japan’s primary launch vehicle.

Mission and Market

The H3 is a flexible, medium-to-heavy-lift rocket. Its most powerful H3-24L configuration can lift approximately 8.8 metric tons (8,800 kg) to GTO, while other variants can lift as much as 16,000 kg to LEO.

Its primary role is to ensure sovereign access to space for Japan. The rocket’s manifest is anchored by Japanese government missions.

• Civil Space: Launching HTV-X cargo ships to the ISS and future space stations like the Lunar Gateway.
• Science: Launching JAXA’s scientific satellites and deep-space probes.
• National Security: Deploying Japan’s reconnaissance and communications satellites.

With its lower price point, the H3 is also making a serious play for the commercial market. MHI Launch Services is marketing the rocket to international satellite operators, offering a compelling blend of Japanese reliability at a cost that is now competitive with its Western counterparts.

Direct Comparison: Philosophy and Hardware

New Glenn and H3 are two very different answers to the same question: how to build a successful rocket in the 21st century.

Reusability vs. Expendable Optimization

The most fundamental difference is their approach to cost.

New Glenn is a bet on reusability. It has a very high upfront development cost, but it is designed to achieve a very low recurring operational cost by flying its most expensive component, the first stage, over and over. This is a high-risk, high-reward strategy that, if successful, can capture a dominant market share.

H3 is a bet on expendable optimization. It accepts that the rocket will be thrown away after each flight and focuses on making that single-use rocket as cheaply and efficiently as possible. It lowers costs through simplified manufacturing, the use of automotive-grade components, and its modular design, which prevents “over-buying” of performance.

The Propellant Divide

The rockets’ first-stage fuel choices reflect their design philosophies.

New Glenn’s methane is ideal for reuse. It’s cheap, abundant, and its clean-burning nature simplifies refurbishment, enabling the high launch-cadence Blue Origin needs for Project Kuiper.

H3’s liquid hydrogen is a classic “expendable” fuel. It is the most efficient fuel by weight, allowing MHI to squeeze the maximum possible performance out of every drop of propellant. The ground-handling complexities of hydrogen are a manageable, known cost in an expendable launch flow.

By the Numbers: New Glenn vs. H3

This table highlights the stark differences in scale and capability between the two launch systems.

The specifications make the difference clear. New Glenn is in a different weight class. It is a true heavy-lift vehicle, while H3 is a medium-to-heavy lifter. New Glenn’s 45-ton payload to LEO is nearly three times that of the most powerful H3. Its 7-meter fairing offers a internal volume that H3 cannot match.

This doesn’t mean New Glenn is “better.” It means they are built for different jobs. H3 is not designed to lift 45 tons to LEO. It is designed to lift 8 tons to GTO or 15 tons to LEO as cheaply and reliably as possible.

The Strategic Implications

These two rockets are entering a market that is desperate for launch capacity. The retirement of Europe’s Ariane 5, the delays of Ariane 6, the grounding of Russian Soyuz rockets from the Western market, and the development pains of ULA’s Vulcan have created a launch bottleneck. Both New Glenn and H3 are perfectly timed to fill this void.

For the United States

New Glenn’s arrival is a major strategic win for the United States. It provides a second, independent, reusable heavy-lift launch provider alongside SpaceX. NASA and the U.S. Space Force have long desired this, as it creates competition and provides “assured access to space,” a key national security doctrine that ensures the U.S. can launch its satellites even if one rocket (or company) is grounded. Its successful landing on November 13, 2025, signals that this new era of competition has truly begun.

For Japan

The H3 is, first and foremost, a declaration of independence. It ensures Japan can execute its national space policy on its own terms. It can launch its own intelligence satellites, its own navigation satellites, and its own contributions to international space exploration (like the HTV-X cargo ship) without relying on other nations. Its string of successful launches in 2024 and 2025 has solidified this sovereign capability. The fact that it is now commercially competitive is a significant bonus, allowing MHI to earn foreign currency and maintain a healthy production line.

Summary

The competition between New Glenn and H3 is a perfect illustration of the modern space industry. They represent two divergent paths to success, both of which are proving to be viable.

New Glenn is the American private-sector, reusable-first giant. Built on a long-term vision and funded by deep private capital, it is designed to deploy massive constellations and disrupt the heavy-lift market with a high launch cadence and low recurring costs. Its recent first successful booster landing in November 2025 marks its arrival as a major force.

The H3 is the Japanese public-private, expendable-optimized workhorse. Born from a legacy of reliability, it was redesigned to slash costs through modularity and manufacturing efficiency. After a dramatic initial failure, it has recovered to become a reliable, operational rocket, ensuring Japan’s sovereign access to space while competing for its own share of the international market.

Both rockets have overcome years of development challenges and are now flying. Their competition, and their different approaches, will help define the launch landscape for decades to come.

Last update on 2025-12-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API