Blue Origin reaches orbit in first New Glenn rocket launch, misses booster landing

Blue Origin, the space company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, launched its massive New Glenn rocket for the first time early on Thursday, a live streaming of the blast-off showed.

The rocket, whose inaugural mission had been delayed by several years, blasted of at 2.03am from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Base in the US state of Florida, the webcast showed.

The mission is seen as critical to Blue Origin’s efforts to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which dominates the commercial space industry.

“LIFTOFF! New Glenn is beginning its first ever ascent toward the stars,” Blue Origin said on social media platform X.

“New Glenn has passed the Karman line, the internationally recognised boundary of space!” the firm posted just a few minutes later.