Blue Origin efficiently launches its SpaceX rival

The billionaire area race entered a brand new section as we speak when Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin efficiently launched its 320-foot-tall New Glenn rocket this morning from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

At 2:03AM ET this morning, New Glenn’s seven reusable BE-4 engines ignited to propel the NG-1 rocket into area, with the second stage and payload reaching orbit to attain Blue Origin’s main mission purpose.

In parallel, the primary stage booster — dubbed, “So You’re Telling Me There’s A Likelihood” — autonomously descended to its touchdown platform positioned a number of hundred miles downrange within the Atlantic. Because it approached the Jacklyn barge, the booster misplaced contact with management and stopped sending information. Blue Origin confirmed that the booster was misplaced throughout touchdown.

Nonetheless, Blue Origin’s purpose for as we speak’s uncrewed launch was for New Glenn to succeed in orbit. Something past that might be a bonus — like activating a prototype of the Blue Ring Pathfinder payload car or touchdown the reusable booster. “It doesn’t matter what, we are going to be taught lots,” stated Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp forward of as we speak’s launch. 

The launch comes after nearly a decade of growth and places Elon Musk’s SpaceX on discover. New Glenn has about the identical carrying capability as SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy, and is supposed to shuttle cargo into area on the reusable launch platform. This consists of satellites for Blue Origin’s rival to Starlink’s high-speed low-latency web service. The primary of those 3,236 Challenge Kuiper satellites are anticipated to launch into low Earth orbit quickly, aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket earlier than New Glenn can take over the heavy lifting.