STORY: :: Courtney Blair

This uncrewed Blue Origin rocket had just ignited in its launchpad on Thursday when it suddenly exploded...

erupting into a massive fireball, sending a towering plume of flames and smoke into the air.

Jeff Bezos' space venture said it had experienced an "anomaly," a term commonly used to describe a launch failure or explosion.

In a post on X, the Amazon billionaire said all personnel were accounted for and that it was "too early to know the root cause" of the incident.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency would work with partners to support an investigation, adding that NASA would provide information on any impact to its Artemis and Moon Base programs.

The incident is a major setback for Bezos' Blue Origin, as it seeks to narrow the gap with Elon Musk's IPO-bound SpaceX.

Both billionaire-run companies have been racing to help return people to the moon by designing the lunar landers NASA will use.

Musk responded on X to a video of the Blue Origin explosion, saying: "Most unfortunate. Rockets are hard."