Blue Origin launched its massive new rocket on its first test flight Thursday, sending up a prototype satellite to orbit thousands of miles above Earth. Named after the first American to orbit Earth,

The successful launch of Blue Origin’s massive new rocket is a key step that may allow the company to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket is about to make a second launch attempt from Florida The reusable rocket had initially been due to set off earlier this week, but was postponed due to a "vehicle subsystem issue" The rocket, New Glenn, is named after John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth