Bezos’ Blue Origin reaches orbit in first rocket launch

Blue Origin’s giant New Glenn rocket blasted off from Florida early Thursday morning on its first mission to space, an inaugural step into Earth’s orbit for Jeff Bezos’ space company as it aims to rival SpaceX in the satellite launch business. Thirty stories tall with a reusable first stage, New Glenn launched from Blue Origin’s launchpad at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, its seven engines thundering for miles.

Blue Origin VP Ariane Cornell said, “We hit our key, critical, number-one objective, we got to orbit safely.” The rocket’s reusable first stage booster was due to land on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean after separating from its second stage, but failed to make it, Cornell confirmed. Telemetry from the booster blacked out minutes after liftoff. The mission marks Blue Origin’s first trek to Earth’s orbit in the 25 years since Bezos founded the company.
This is a Reuters’ story