The New Space Race: Elon Musk's SpaceX vs. Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin

Updated: May 10 2024 02:01

In the 1960s, the United States and the Soviet Union were locked in a fierce competition to put the first human on the moon. Today, a new space race is unfolding, but this time, it's between two billionaire entrepreneurs and their respective aerospace companies: Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. The prize? Being the first to return astronauts to the lunar surface in over half a century.


In 2017, NASA launched the Artemis program, which aims to land the first woman and the next man on the moon by 2024. To achieve this ambitious goal, the space agency has turned to the private sector for help, awarding contracts to both SpaceX and Blue Origin to develop lunar landers capable of ferrying astronauts to and from the moon's surface.


On 16 November 2022 at 01:47:44 EST (06:47:44 UTC), Artemis 1 successfully launched from the Kennedy Space Center. Artemis 1 was completed on 11 December, when the Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, west of Baja California, after a record-breaking mission, which saw Artemis travel more than 1.4 million miles on a path around the Moon before returning safely to Earth. The splashdown occurred 50 years to the day since NASA's Apollo 17 Moon landing, the last astronaut mission to touch down on the lunar surface. Below is the Artemis 1 launch to splashdown highlights video from NASA:


Artemis 2 is scheduled to launch in September 2025 as a crewed lunar flyby. Testing is underway on the Orion module for Artemis 2. In April 2024, Lockheed was on track to hand over the Orion module by September. It was announced that the Orion module completed electromagnetic testing successfully in April 2024 after which the module will undergo further work in preparation for additional testing in Summer 2024.

Below is the video from NASA showing a team lifts the Artemis II Orion spacecraft into a vacuum chamber inside the Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it will undergo electromagnetic compatibility and interference testing:



SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk in 2002, has quickly become a major player in the aerospace industry. The company's flagship project is the Starship, a massive, fully reusable rocket designed to carry cargo and crew to the moon, Mars, and beyond. In 2019, SpaceX began testing prototypes of the Starship in Boca Chica, Texas, with the goal of conducting an uncrewed test landing on the moon as early as 2023 and a crewed mission by 2026.

On March 14, 2024, Starship successfully lifted off at 8:25 a.m. CT from Starbase in Texas and went on to accomplish several major milestones and firsts. Starship's six second stage Raptor engines all started successfully and powered the vehicle to its expected orbit, becoming the first Starship to complete its full-duration ascent burn.

Starship went on to experience its first ever entry from space, providing valuable data on heating and vehicle control during hypersonic reentry. Live views of entry were made possible by Starlink terminals operating on Starship. Check out the Starship third flight test video below from SpaceX:


One of the key challenges facing SpaceX is the need to refuel the Starship in orbit. Due to the immense energy required to escape Earth's gravity, the rocket cannot carry enough fuel to make a round trip to the moon on a single tank. To overcome this, SpaceX plans to launch multiple Starships, with some serving as refueling depots in Earth's orbit. This complex choreography has been met with skepticism from some in the industry, but SpaceX remains confident in its approach.


Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, established Blue Origin in 2000 with the goal of making space travel more accessible and affordable. In 2019, Bezos unveiled the company's lunar lander, Blue Moon, designed to transport cargo and eventually astronauts to the moon's surface.

Unlike SpaceX's Starship, which uses methane as its fuel source, Blue Moon relies on hydrogen, which could potentially be mined from water on the moon in the future. Initially, Blue Origin criticized SpaceX's multi-launch refueling architecture as too complex. However, the company has since adopted a similar approach, with plans to use a "space tug" to refuel its lander in Earth's orbit before following it to the moon.

On December 19 2023, Blue Origin successfully completed its 24th New Shepard flight and 13th payload mission from Launch Site One in West Texas. The flight carried 33 payloads from NASA, academia, research institutions, and commercial companies, bringing the number of payloads flown on New Shepard to more than 150. Check out the full launch video from Blue Origin below:



While both SpaceX and Blue Origin have made significant progress in their lunar ambitions, SpaceX appears to have the edge in terms of technology and experience. The company has already successfully launched and landed its Starship prototypes, also just performed static test fire with Ship 30 in preparation for the fifth Starship flight. Starship 30 conducted what appeared to be a successful 6 engine static fire test.


These all happened while Blue Origin's New Glenn reusable rocket, which is crucial to its lunar plans, has yet to make its maiden flight.


However, the race to the moon is far from over. Blue Origin plans to send an uncrewed cargo version of its lander to the lunar surface as early as 2024, potentially beating SpaceX to the punch. Ultimately, the success of these missions will depend on a myriad of factors, from technological breakthroughs to funding and political support.

Here are the actual sizes of the SpaceX and Blue Origin lunar landers below:



The renewed interest in lunar exploration is not just about bragging rights or national prestige. The moon holds vast untapped resources, from water ice that could be converted into rocket fuel to rare earth elements that are essential for modern electronics. Establishing a permanent human presence on the moon could also serve as a stepping stone for future missions to Mars and beyond.

Moreover, the competition between SpaceX and Blue Origin is driving innovation and pushing the boundaries of what's possible in space exploration. As these companies continue to develop new technologies and lower the cost of access to space, they are paving the way for a new era of scientific discovery and commercial opportunities.

The new space race between Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin is a testament to the power of private enterprise and the enduring human desire to explore the unknown. While the outcome of this competition remains uncertain, one thing is clear: the future of space exploration is bright, and the moon is once again within our reach.