Blue Origin successfully lands New Glenn booster for the first time

Blue Origin, the space company founded by Jeff Bezos, has completed the second successful launch of its heavy-lift New Glenn rocket and, for the first time, landed its reusable first stage. The milestone was announced in a company blog post.

The launch took place on 13 November 2025 at 3:55:01 PM EST / 20:55:01 UTC from Cape Canaveral, Florida. All engines ignited as planned, and the rocket delivered two NASA probes into orbit as part of the Escapade mission.

Roughly ten minutes after liftoff, the booster performed a controlled landing on the floating platform Jacklyn in the Atlantic Ocean. SpaceX has achieved similar landings for years, and Elon Musk publicly congratulated Blue Origin and Jeff Bezos on the accomplishment.

The NASA probes are now headed to Mars to study the planet’s magnetosphere and the surrounding plasma environment. Their mission includes investigating how Mars lost its water and atmosphere. The spacecraft are expected to enter Martian orbit in September 2027.

The payload separated from the launcher about 35 minutes after liftoff, marking another success for the Escapade mission.

New Glenn, a two-stage heavy orbital rocket, has been in development since 2015. Designed primarily for cargo, it can carry up to 45 metric tons into orbit.

The rocket’s first flight took place on 16 January 2025, but its first stage was lost during recovery. The second launch faced two delays, yet ultimately succeeded on all fronts.

Blue Origin also operates the reusable suborbital spacecraft New Shepard. Its first crewed flight occurred in July 2021 with Jeff Bezos on board. In 2025, the company introduced the option to pay for flights using cryptocurrency.