Jeff Bezos' new rocket, taller than the Statue of Liberty, has blasted into space. The giant 320-foot-tall New Glenn rocket, named for legendary U.S. astronaut John Glenn, achieved a successful maiden launch after launching from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station just after 2 a.

The rocket took off at 2:03 a.m. and reached orbit 13 minutes later, marking Blue Origin's first successful flight.

Elon Musk's SpaceX on Wednesday pushed back its latest orbital flight test of Starship, the colossal prototype rocket the company hopes will help humans colonize Mars.- Betting on Starship - SpaceX already dominates the orbital launch market with its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, which serve commercial clients, NASA and the Pentagon.