Blue Origin's giant New Glenn rocket blasted off from Florida on its first mission to space, an inaugural step into Earth's orbit for Jeff Bezos' space company as it aims to rival SpaceX in the satellite launch business.

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket blasts off and reaches orbit on its initial flight. More Videos. How to make new friends using Reddit, Instagram, more

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin launched its first New Glenn rocket early Thursday morning from Florida, an inaugural step into Earth's orbit to rival SpaceX in the satellite launch market. (Reporting by Joey Roulette;

In the early morning hours of Dec. 31, 2024, SpaceX ended its year as it began it, with one final launch of Starlink satellites into orbit. The launch marked SpaceX's 134th mission of the year (138 missions if you count Starship test flights).