A landmark moment in the commercial space race, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin achieved the historic first stage recovery of its New Glenn rocket on November 13 during the NG-2 mission.
Launching from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, the heavy-lift carrier not only deployed NASA’s twin-engine Escapade spacecraft to Mars, but also saw the launcher, nicknamed “Never Tell Me The Odds,” land precisely on the ocean barge “Jacklin.” The mission was a huge success, making Blue Origin the second company after Elon Musk’s SpaceX to recover an orbital-class reusable booster. Additionally, as both giants work to colonize Mars, their long-simmering rivalry becomes serious.
The launch, which was delayed twice for technical checks, lifted off at 3:55 p.m. EDT carrying an identical Escapade spacecraft designed to study the interaction of Mars’ magnetosphere and solar wind. New Glenn’s first stage, powered by seven BE-4 methane-fueled engines, generated 17,100 kN of thrust during climb, separated cleanly before performing a boost back burn, and made a propelled landing with a descent distance of 620 miles. “BOOSTER TOUCHDOWN! New Glenn returns to its blue roots,” Blue Origin announced triumphantly at X, demonstrating the importance of the milestone to rapid reusability.
New Glenn Reusability Leap: Catching Up with SpaceX’s Falcon
In contrast, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 has achieved more than 300 recoveries since 2015, and can boast a 98 percent success rate and an average of 15 flights per booster. But New Glenn’s methane LOX propulsion offers cleaner combustion and higher payload capacity (45 tons to low Earth orbit), making it a direct challenger. Experts say Blue Origin has “turned a corner” and is now being launched more frequently for Amazon satellites and NASA contracts.
Bezos and Musk’s standoff intensifies: From copycat jabs to congratulatory tweets
The feat drew an immediate reaction from Elon Musk, who once called Bezos a “copycat” during a contract dispute. “Congratulations to @JeffBezos and the @BlueOrigin team!” Musk posted to X, a rare olive branch in the decade-long feud between the two that escalated in 2019 over NASA’s moon bid. Social sentiment exploded, with X users calling it the billionaires’ “Avengers Assemble” and Reddit threads buzzing about ending SpaceX’s “monopoly.”
But it’s strategic. Blue Origin’s Mars Edge with Escapade, NASA’s first dual-probe solar wind study, highlights the company’s growing role in deep space technology. SpaceX is leading Starship’s unmanned mission to Mars in 2026, but regulatory delays from the FAA have delayed testing and pushed the crewed flight schedule to 2028. Blue Origin plans to use Artemis for a trip to Mars in the 2030s, potentially saving NASA hundreds of billions of dollars in reuse.
Why this changes everything about the race to Mars
Reusable technology is key to making Mars affordable by enabling the 10 to 20 heavy lifts per year required for habitat and cargo. New Glenn’s success could bring costs down to $2,000 per kilogram, and Musk himself has encouraged competition, saying, “Without reuse, Mars is a pipe dream. Economics will win the race.” With Blue Origin successfully securing a contract for 12 launches in 2025 and 2026, and SpaceX having some hurdles to overcome with Starship, there could be even more competition on the road to the Red Planet.
Bezos has personally invested billions of dollars in this “Duel of the Titans,” accelerating humanity’s multiplanetary future. Look out for New Glenn’s third flight planned for January 2026. This is aimed at a Blue Moon moon landing, which Musk has not yet claimed.
