Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin successfully landed the booster of its New Glenn mega-rocket on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean on its second attempt, becoming the second company to achieve such a feat, following Elon Musk’s SpaceX. This milestone will enable the new rocket system to carry larger payloads into space, the Moon, and beyond.
The launch on Thursday was pivotal, not only for the landing but also because, roughly 34 minutes after liftoff, the New Glenn’s upper stage successfully deployed its first commercial payload: twin spacecraft for NASA designed to study Mars’ atmosphere. These achievements are significant for only the second launch of this massive rocket system, potentially positioning Blue Origin as a competitor to SpaceX, which currently leads the global launch market with its Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Starship rockets.
This accomplishment is a notable advancement for the entire space industry, recognized by SpaceX CEO Gwynne Shotwell, who remarked with “Magnificent!” on social media. Elon Musk also shared his congratulations soon after.
New Glenn’s initial launch occurred in January, but Blue Origin faced several delays before the recent flight. The company aimed for a second launch in the spring but postponed it multiple times due to various challenges, including weather and solar storms. Eventually, the rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 36 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at approximately 3:55 p.m. ET. About four minutes into the flight, the second stage separated and continued into space, while the 189-foot-tall booster began its descent back to Earth, landing on the platform around ten minutes into the flight.
During its first flight in January, Blue Origin attempted to land the New Glenn booster, but the booster exploded before it could touch down on the drone ship. Following this, the company collaborated with the Federal Aviation Administration to identify and fix multiple issues, boosting their confidence for the second attempt.
Successfully landing a booster is a crucial step toward making the rocket system reusable, which reduces costs for customers-a competency SpaceX has already mastered. Blue Origin now needs to prove it can refurbish the rocket booster for future launches.
These capabilities are essential for both commercial and government missions. Blue Origin has focused on lunar exploration for years and is actively developing a lunar lander, similar to SpaceX’s Starship. However, the government has urged both companies to accelerate their lunar programs, with acting NASA administrator Sean Duffy recently criticizing SpaceX for slow progress.
Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp stated his company “will move heaven and Earth” to assist NASA in returning to the Moon more quickly, but reiterated that this requires successfully demonstrating all of New Glenn’s capabilities. Thursday’s launch was a significant step toward that objective.
Original Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/13/blue-origin-sticks-first-new-glenn-rocket-landing-and-launches-nasa-spacecraft/
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Publish Date: 2025-11-14 03:21:00
