Blue Origin, the company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, successfully carried out the first test flight of its new heavy-lift rocket, New Glenn.
The launch, which took place today, marks an important step for the company in its ambitious space program and its competition with Elon Musk’s space business.
Twelve minutes after liftoff, the nearly 100-meter rocket successfully deployed a payload module into orbit, achieving the main objective of the test flight. However, 20 minutes after launch, Blue Origin reported that the attempt to land the rocket’s first stage on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean had failed.
This launch is seen as a significant step for Blue Origin in its goal to compete with SpaceX, Elon Musk’s company. Both companies plan to develop private space programs and conduct regular missions to the Moon. Despite this, Bezos emphasized that his goals are not centered around competition. Elon Musk congratulated the Blue Origin team on the successful launch via his social media platform X.