Blue Origin nails booster landing after launching NASA’s Mars mission

ed its descent, and touched down vertically on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean — a feat previously achieved only by SpaceX.

Launch commentator Tabitha Lipkin hailed the moment, saying: “We’re here, we’re in the game, we have a reusable booster and this is just the beginning.”

Bezos later posted on Instagram, praising the precision landing: “We nominally target a few hundred feet away from Jacklyn to avoid a severe impact if engines fail to start or start slowly… Amazing performance by the team! Gradatim Ferociter.”

NASA spacecraft on course to Mars

Shortly after the booster’s landing, Blue Origin confirmed the successful deployment of the Rocket Lab–built spacecraft. The probes will first remain in a stable orbit before beginning their journey to Mars next year, when Earth and the Red Pl