Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin rocket blasts off in challenge to Elon Musk’s SpaceX

Launch of Amazon founder’s New Glenn craft on second attempt ramps up rivalry between tech billionaires

Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin company hailed “a new era” in commercial spaceflight on Thursday after its giant New Glenn rocket made a long-awaited successful maiden launch from Florida.

The spectacular early morning liftoff from Cape Canaveral space force station was a milestone moment for Bezos’s rivalry with fellow billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has stolen a march in Nasa’s reliance on private industry for satellite and crewed launches in lower Earth orbit.

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