Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin successfully launches first rocket since 2022 fail
Blue Origin rocket (twitter.com)
Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos' space venture, successfully launched a rocket New Shepard on Tuesday, marking its first flight since a mishap over a year ago due to engine trouble, according to AP News.
The New Shepard rocket, named after Alan Shepard who was the first American in space, took off from West Texas. It carried a capsule filled with experiments, including those that were part of the failed Blue Origin launch in September 2022. Neither the earlier nor the recent flight had any crew members on board.
The capsule reached the outskirts of space before landing via parachute in the desert. The rocket, released after the capsule, safely landed following the 10-minute flight, reaching an altitude of 66 miles (107 kilometers).
In the previous unsuccessful launch, the rocket deviated from its course shortly after liftoff, triggering the escape system to push the capsule away. Although the capsule landed safely, the rocket crashed.
Blue Origin company
Blue Origin is located in a remote area southeast of El Paso and has been functioning for nearly two decades. It has conducted various launches, including experiments for NASA in 2019 and passenger flights in 2021. The company has undertaken six launches with a total of 31 passengers. It carries out brief research flights as well as provides space tourism experiences.
Other rocket launches
Elon Musk's SpaceX company is Blue Origin's first competitor in conquering space. Its Starship rocket is a key component of Musk's plan to transport cargo and people to Mars. However, the first Starship launch on April 20 failed.
SpaceX faced another setback during the second launch of its Starship spacecraft. The rocket reached an altitude of 148 kilometers, but communication was lost shortly after liftoff.
After two unsuccessful rocket launches, SpaceX is gearing up for the third launch of Starship.
