Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin landed the booster of its New Glenn giant rocket on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean on just its second attempt. It is the second company to accomplish such a feat, after Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
This is an achievement that will help new rocket systems become an option for sending larger payloads to space, the moon, and beyond.
But Thursday’s launch wasn’t just about the landing attempt. Approximately 34 minutes after liftoff, New Glenn’s upper stage successfully deployed the rocket’s first commercial payload: a twin-engine spacecraft for NASA bound for Mars to study the Red Planet’s atmosphere.
These two accomplishments are notable for being the second ever launch of such a huge rocket system. And that could put Blue Origin in a position to compete with SpaceX, which dominates the global launch market with its Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and Starship rockets.
The achievement is remarkable for the broader space industry, and SpaceX CEO Gwynne Shotwell acknowledged it simply, “Amazing!” in a post on social media site X. Shortly afterward, Musk also offered his own congratulations.
New Glenn’s first launch was in January, and Blue Origin experienced multiple delays in launching its second rocket. The company had hoped to make a second attempt as early as the spring, but it was repeatedly postponed. New Glenn finally reached the launch pad on Sunday, but was further delayed by weather and a solar storm.
The rocket finally took off from Launch Complex 36 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, around 3:55 p.m. ET on Thursday. About four minutes into the flight, the second stage separated and headed further into space, while the New Glenn booster began its return journey to Earth. Approximately 10 minutes into the flight, the 189-foot-tall booster touched down on the platform.
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Blue Origin had hoped to bring the New Glenn booster back for the rocket’s maiden flight in January. However, the booster exploded before landing on the drone ship. Blue Origin worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to identify the rocket, made a number of modifications, and was confident it could sustain a landing on the second attempt.
The ability to land boosters in this way is an important step toward making rocket systems reusable, reducing costs for customers. This is a capability that SpaceX has mastered. Blue Origin will now need to demonstrate its ability to refurbish its rocket booster and launch again.
These are important features for commercial customers and government agencies. Blue Origin has had its eye on the moon for years, and is currently developing a lunar lander. The same goes for SpaceX with Starship. But the government has called for accelerating those plans, and NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy recently criticized SpaceX for moving too slowly.
Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp recently responded by saying the company would “move heaven and earth” to help NASA return to the moon sooner. But that won’t be possible unless New Glenn can successfully demonstrate all his abilities.
Thursday’s launch was a significant step toward achieving that overarching goal.
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