Blue Origin launches New Glenn rocket in critical debut

Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin successfully launches New Glenn, marking a significant step in its rivalry with SpaceX.

The Blue Origin New Glenn rocket lifts off from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of its scheduled 1 a.m. launch on January 16, 2025, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photo by Miguel J. Rodríguez Carrillo/Getty Images

By Alana Salsabila and Amanda Zahra

Blue Origin, the aerospace company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, successfully launched its massive New Glenn rocket for the first time early Thursday. The long-anticipated liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Base in Florida marks a pivotal moment in Blue Origin’s bid to compete with SpaceX, the dominant force in the commercial space industry.

The rocket, named after legendary American astronaut John Glenn, blasted off at 2:03 a.m. (0703 GMT), according to a livestream of the event. Blue Origin’s social media channels celebrated the milestone, posting, “LIFTOFF! New Glenn is beginning its first ever ascent toward the stars.” Minutes later, they confirmed the rocket had passed the Kármán line, the internationally recognized boundary of space.

The company also announced that New Glenn’s second stage and payload successfully reached orbit.

The launch, dubbed NG-1, was initially scheduled for earlier in the week but faced several delays. An initial attempt on Monday was scrubbed due to icing issues on a purge line. Subsequent unfavorable weather conditions pushed the mission to Thursday.

The towering 320-foot (98-meter) rocket had been years in the making, with its inaugural flight delayed multiple times. However, its successful debut signals a turning point for Blue Origin, which has ambitions to rival Elon Musk’s SpaceX in both commercial and government-backed space missions. 

Blue Origin’s mission comes amid heightened competition with SpaceX, which has dominated the orbital launch market with its Falcon 9 rockets. Falcon 9 has become a workhorse for commercial satellites, NASA missions, and Pentagon contracts.

“SpaceX has for the past several years been pretty much the only game in town, and so having a competitor… this is great,” said G. Scott Hubbard, a retired senior NASA official, in an earlier interview with AFP. He noted that the competition could drive down launch costs and spur innovation.

Adding to the rivalry, SpaceX is preparing another orbital test this week of its new-generation Starship rocket, which aims to push the boundaries of reusable space technology.

Physically, New Glenn dwarfs SpaceX’s Falcon 9 at 230 feet but is smaller than the colossal Starship. The rocket is designed to carry heavier payloads and features a wider payload fairing, enabling it to transport the equivalent of 20 moving trucks in a single flight. 

Blue Origin is also taking steps to match SpaceX’s success with reusable rockets. The New Glenn’s first-stage booster was designed to land on a drone ship stationed 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) downrange in the Atlantic Ocean—a first for the company.

While SpaceX has perfected such landings with Falcon 9, this marks Blue Origin’s first attempt at recovering a rocket stage at sea. Previously, the company achieved successful landings with its smaller New Shepard rockets, which are primarily used for suborbital space tourism.

New Glenn’s debut is not just about reusability or payload capacity; it also represents Blue Origin’s broader ambitions. The rocket will play a crucial role in launching NASA missions, including two Mars probes, as well as deploying Project Kuiper, a satellite internet constellation designed to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink.

The NG-1 mission also carried a Defense Department-funded prototype of the advanced Blue Ring spacecraft, which aims to test technologies for potential deep-space missions.

Bezos’s vision for space

Jeff Bezos, like Elon Musk, has a lifelong passion for space exploration. However, while Musk dreams of colonizing Mars, Bezos envisions moving heavy industry off Earth to preserve the planet. He describes Earth as “humanity’s blue origin” and advocates for building floating space platforms for industrial activities.

New Glenn is a key part of this vision, providing a heavy-lift launch vehicle capable of supporting government and commercial missions. If successful, it could offer the U.S. government valuable “dissimilar redundancy,” ensuring backup options if other systems fail, according to Scott Pace, a space policy analyst at George Washington University.

Despite New Glenn’s successful launch, Blue Origin faces challenges in catching up to SpaceX. SpaceX continues to dominate the industry, launching dozens of missions annually and securing high-profile contracts. Other competitors, including United Launch Alliance, Arianespace, and Rocket Lab, also remain active in the space race.

However, New Glenn’s capabilities give Blue Origin a competitive edge in certain markets. Its larger payload capacity and advanced features make it well-suited for ambitious missions, including deploying large satellite constellations and supporting interplanetary exploration.

As Blue Origin builds on New Glenn’s debut, the company aims to solidify its position in the commercial space sector. The successful launch represents a significant step forward, but the road ahead will require continued innovation, operational reliability, and strategic partnerships.

For now, New Glenn’s first flight is a milestone that underscores the growing competition in the space industry. With rivals like SpaceX pushing boundaries and new players entering the field, the race for dominance in space is far from over.

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