Blue Origin’s New Glenn Booster Arrives at Port Canaveral!

UPDATE: Blue Origin’s first-ever recovered first-stage booster for the New Glenn rocket has just arrived at Port Canaveral this morning, November 18, 2025. This significant milestone follows the booster’s successful launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station five days ago as part of the NG-2 mission for NASA.

The massive booster, named “Never Tell Me The Odds,” towers over the port skyline, standing out with its pristine white paint and gold top. In a striking comparison, nearby SpaceX Falcon 9 boosters show signs of wear from multiple missions, highlighting the New Glenn’s unique achievement.

The booster successfully landed on Blue Origin’s recovery vessel, Jacklyn, approximately 375 miles downrange. This marks a historic moment for Blue Origin, bringing the company into direct competition with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has successfully recovered boosters for nearly a decade.

Blue Origin’s New Glenn boosters stand at 189 feet tall, dwarfing the Falcon 9’s 135 feet. The New Glenn’s diameter is also impressive, measuring 23 feet compared to the Falcon 9’s 12 feet. The entire rocket system rises to an astounding 322 feet at launch, showcasing Blue Origin’s engineering capabilities.

This successful booster recovery is a pivotal moment for Blue Origin, coming ten years after SpaceX’s first booster recovery. SpaceX has since achieved over 535 recoveries and reuses, while Blue Origin aims to reuse its New Glenn boosters up to 25 times. The company is already gearing up for its next launch, intended to send the uncrewed Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar lander to the moon.

Blue Origin’s recovery operations at Port Canaveral are set against a backdrop of ongoing innovation in the space industry. The company has constructed multiple New Glenn stages at its manufacturing site in Merritt Island, adjacent to the Kennedy Space Center. This growth signals the company’s ambition to play a significant role in future space exploration.

The arrival of the New Glenn booster at Port Canaveral is a moment of pride for Blue Origin and its founder, Jeff Bezos, who has been a vocal advocate for advancing space travel. As the company looks ahead to its next mission, the space community eagerly awaits the future of the New Glenn rocket.

Stay tuned for more updates as Blue Origin continues to pave its path in the competitive landscape of space exploration.