Blue Origin's New Glenn Rocket Completes First Mission, Begins Direct Competition With Spacex

Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/Getty Images

Blue Origin, nan commercialized abstraction institution founded by Jeff Bezos, has successfully completed its first operational ngo pinch its New Glenn reusable rocket. That's 1 elephantine leap for nan company, arsenic it has now demonstrated that it is fresh to return manufacture juggernaut SpaceX head-on. The ngo progressive delivering a existent (not test) payload into low-Earth orbit and past landing its first-stage rocket connected a drone boat. To date, Blue Origin had only managed a trial payload delivery, and nary 1 astatine each had copied SpaceX's expertise to onshore connected a ship. In different words, Blue Origin isn't conscionable a tube dream anymore — it's a existent boy.

In fairness, nan Washington-based institution made it arsenic easy arsenic possible. The payload was only 2 mini satellites from Rocket Lab, yet destined for Mars orbit. That is acold little full weight than nan New Glenn is nominally tin of. As nan New York Times put it, "It's for illustration driving a tractor-trailer motortruck to present a mates of pizzas." But hey, pizzas delivered! And pizzas are important, particularly erstwhile they mightiness thief NASA find why Mars mislaid its atmosphere.

The ship, named Jacklyn (after Bezos' mom), returned to larboard connected Monday, afloat completing nan betterment of nan rocket's first stage. Blue Origin gave that rocket portion a name, by nan way: Never Tell Me nan Odds. Han Solo would beryllium proud.

But nan large takeaway present is that SpaceX yet has immoderate existent title for its halfway business. While the hugely eager (and explodey) Starship grabs astir of nan headlines these days, it's nan Falcon 9 that has been nan workhorse that transformed an industry. It's wholly changed nan economics of abstraction launches, since its first shape tin onshore itself connected a vessel for betterment and reuse. So far, that's led to 516 landings and 484 reflights.

Now, nan New Glenn has proved it tin propulsion nan aforesaid instrumentality for orbital payload deliveries. While Blue Origin has a ways to spell earlier it tin lucifer SpaceX's manufacturing and operational pace, arsenic Ars Technica notes, that should beryllium ramping up quickly. Once it does, SpaceX's existent stranglehold connected inexpensive launches will slacken. That intends astir apt moreover cheaper prices for launch, but besides less power that it and CEO Elon Musk tin exert connected nan authorities and military.

It's fitting that nan New Glenn's adjacent scheduled payload is Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar lander. SpaceX's Starship was group to beryllium NASA's first crewed lunar lander since nan 1970s — until this month, erstwhile the rocket's woes forced NASA to reopen nan contract. The astir apt victor of that statement would beryllium Blue Origin. Bezos' institution almost seems for illustration it's taunting Musk's.

To SpaceX's credit, it has led nan displacement successful humanity's abstraction activities from nan nationalist to nan backstage sector, easy 10 years up of nan curve. It reinvigorated some nationalist liking and existent activity successful space. But that curve whitethorn yet beryllium here. Going forward, it will request to show that it has either a superior aliases a cheaper product; it can't trust connected being nan only reusable rocket successful town. Ah well, astatine slightest Blue Origin isn't besides trying to rotation up a competitor to its Starlink outer constellation — hey, wait.