Blue Origin, the space company of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, launched its first rocket, New Glenn, as part of the NG-1 mission, which aims to test the reliability of telemetry, tracking and command systems used in space, as well as ground-based radiometric tracking systems. The rocket, which will deliver the Blue Ring Pathfinder space platform to orbit, took off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Base in the US state of Florida at 02:03 local time.
The 98-meter-long rocket, known to have been in development for about 10 years, has partial reusability and a 50-ton payload capacity. It is also stated that the rocket has safety features that can be used for future manned missions.
Following the launch, it was announced that the attempt to land the rocket’s reusable first-stage booster on an unmanned platform called Jacklyn in the Atlantic Ocean was unsuccessful.