Elon Musk has congratulated Jeff Bezos on Blue Origin's big win.
The space company's New Glenn rocket successfully blasted into orbit from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7 am GMT on Thursday.
This comes just days after a previous launch attempt was scrapped around 3 am ET (8 am GMT) because ice had built up on one of the propellant lines.
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Secured inside the 30-storey tall Blue Origin rocket payload bay is the first prototype of Blue Origin‘s Blue Ring vehicle, a manoeuvrable spacecraft that's to be sold to Pentagon as well as commercial customers for national security and satellite servicing missions.
As Thursday’s attempt went smoothly, the mission is to land New Glenn’s first-stage booster on a floating barge in the Atlantic Ocean just 10 minutes after lift off.
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The space race between Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos has been nothing short of dramatic. New Glenn is seen as Blue Origin’s answer to SpaceX’s technology, and Bezos has made it clear he’s determined to compete with Musk.
However, the Tesla CEO put rivalry aside - at least for a moment - to congratulate the Amazon founder on the achievement.
"Congratulations on reaching orbit on the first attempt!" Musk wrote on X in response to Blue Origin's post, reading: "Second stage engine cutoff confirmed. New Glenn’s second stage and payload are now in orbit. Another burn coming up..."
Whether Musk’s comment was sincere or had a hint of slyness is anyone’s guess though.
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But in the meantime, Bezos has played it cool, previously stating that he sees 'no threat' from Musk's side.
According to Reuters, the Blue Origin founder shared his optimism about the US government’s space agenda and made it clear he’s confident in Blue Origin’s mission.
"Elon has been very clear that he's doing this for the public interest and not for his personal gain. And I take him at face value," Bezos told Reuters.
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New Glenn's launch success is a huge leap for Blue Origin. Named after John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth, it’s five times taller than Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket which takes paying customers on short trips to the edge of space.
A livestream captured the entire event, showing hundreds of employees coming together to watch the launch from Blue Origin’s headquarters in Kent, Washington, and its rocket factory in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Residents of Florida’s east coast from parks and campsites within miles watched the giant rocket take flight.