The first test flight of Blue Origin’s huge New Glenn rocket could have major implications for long-term economics of the space industry, say experts.
The launch marked a major milestone for Blue Origin, which was started by Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos in 2000. While the company’s New Shepard spacecraft has made multiple launches, sending space tourists to the edge of space, New Glenn takes Blue Origin into the new territory of orbital space missions.
Taller than the Statue of Liberty at more than 320 feet tall, New Glenn is one of the largest space vehicles ever built. By comparison, NASA’s Saturn V was 363 feet tall, and SpaceX’s giant Starship is 403 feet tall.
New Glenn is named after NASA astronaut John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth.
Blue Origin launched New Glenn into orbit from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida early Thursday. Like rival SpaceX, Blue Origin wants to reuse its rocket engines, although the company was unable to land its first-stage booster on a barge in the Atlantic.
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Technion astrophysics Professor Ehud Behar is quoted in this article.
