Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (and many others) posted pics of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, named for astronaut John Glenn, on social after liftoff.

Founded 25 years ago by Bezos, Blue Origin has been launching paying passengers to the edge of space since 2021, including himself. The short hops from Texas use smaller rockets named after the first American in space, Alan Shepard. New Glenn, which honors John Glenn, is five times taller.

Blue Origin successfully launched the rocket after an attempt earlier in the week was scrubbed. The flight is a crucial test of the company’s ability to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

The uncrewed New Glenn rocket took off at 2:03 a.m. EST from Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Blue Origin said.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' space company Blue Origin has tested its new, powerful "New Glenn" rocket for the first time. The rocket, which is around

Jeff Bezos’s space company Blue Origin postponed the inaugural launch of its new rocket early Monday, after running into technical problems. Blue Origin had planned to attempt to blast off its New Glenn rocket from a site in Florida.

Blue Origin did not immediately set a new launch date, saying the team needed more time to resolve the problem.

Blue Origin's New Glenn finally roared into orbit in the early hours of Thursday, with SpaceX's Starship rocket set to launch hours later.

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Elon Musk took to X to share GIFs from the movie "Step Brothers," comparing himself and fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos to the film's two main characters after Bezos's space company, Blue Origin, successfully launched its first rocket into orbit.

Jeff Bezos's space company Blue Origin has successfully launched its massive New Glenn rocket into orbit for the first time, marking a significant challenge to Elon Musk's dominance in the commercial space industry.