The cost per kilogram war
The introduction of New Glenn 9×4 It’s not just a technical update; is a direct economic response to Starship from SpaceX. According to industry analysts consulted by Payload Spacethe viability of the “Golden Dome” anti-missile shield, announced at the beginning of the year by US President Donald Trump, depends drastically on reducing the cost of access to space.
Currently, SpaceX promises theoretical costs for Starship that could fall to as low as 500 dollars per kilogram (around 475 euros) in optimistic scenarios of total reuse. In contrast, the standard version of the New Glenn, with a capacity of around 45 tons for low Earth orbit (LEO), is in an estimated range of between 1000 and 1500 dollars per kilogram, depending on the launch rate.
With the 9×4 variant, Blue Origin aims to increase the payload — potentially exceeding 70 tons — without proportionally increasing operating costs, thanks to the reuse of the first stage. Bezos’ goal is to bring the price closer to what is considered the “magic number” of $800/kg, making it competitive for massive volume government contracts, where the Pentagon seeks to avoid dependence on a single supplier.
O “Golden Dome”
The urgency of these developments relates to the Golden Dome national security project. As already reported by the specialized publication DefenseScoop and according to the Reuters agency, this initiative by the Trump administration, initially estimated at 175 billion dollars (166 billion euros), aims to create a “system of systems” to intercept missiles launched against North American territory, including hypersonic ones.