Blue Origin plans first New Shepard launch after 2022 mishap
Blue Origin is targeting no earlier than Dec. 18 for an uncrewed flight of its New Shepard rocket from Texas. The mission will carry microgravity science on the suborbital flight.
File: NASA Ambassador on Blue Origin: Launch escape system operated successfully
NASA Ambassador Tony Rice says that even though the New Shepard rocket booster suffered a failure, the capsule was drawn away from the booster to safety quickly.
VAN HORN, Texas – Blue Origin is ready to fly its New Shepard rocket again more than 15 months after a mid-launch abort from Texas and a mishap investigation.
During New Shepard's 23rd (NS-23) suborbital launch on Sept. 12, 2022, the rocket suffered a booster failure about 1 minute into the flight from Van Horn. The company founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos was flying tourists to suborbital space with increasing frequency last year before the launch failure, but no crew were in the capsule at the time. The capsule was carrying science payloads and landed safely after the mission was aborted.
BLUE ORIGIN CAPSULE ABORTS MID-LAUNCH AFTER NEW SHEPARD ROCKET ANOMALY IN TEXAS
Blue Origin said the mishap investigation team had Federal Aviation Administration oversight and included representatives of the National Transportation Safety Board and NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program and Commercial Crew Office.
More than a year after the incident, the FAA closed the investigation into the mishap and gave Blue Origin a list of nearly two dozen corrective actions before it could resume launching.
The Blue Origin investigation found that structural failures of an engine nozzle likely played a significant role in operating temperatures. In March, the company said it was implementing corrective actions, including design changes to the combustion chamber and operating parameters.
FAA CLOSES INVESTIGATION INTO BLUE ORIGIN ROCKET FAILURE AND DEMANDS CHANGES BEFORE NEXT LAUNCH
Blue Origin announced on X, formerly Twitter, that it is targeting its first launch in more than a year during a launch window that opens Dec. 18. An exact launch date and time have not been revealed.
Crewed flights aren't back yet. Blue Origin said the New Shepard 24 mission will carry 33 science and research payloads and 38,000 Club for the Future postcards to suborbital space. The payloads onboard will include the re-flight of science from the failed NS-23 mission.
A graphic showing the New Shepard rocket and crew capsule flight profile. (Blue Origin)
The September 2022 launch failure put the capsule escape system to the test, and it worked as designed.
"The anomaly that occurred triggered the capsule escape system," the FAA said after the 2022 mishap. "The capsule landed safely, and the booster impacted within the designated hazard area."
When will Blue Origin resume space tourism flights?
Blue Origin has not revealed when it plans to start launching people again.
The company offers 10-minute spaceflights for tourists to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and provides a low-gravity environment for science payload data.
The crew of Blue Origin's NS-19 mission at apogee on Dec. 11, 2021. Pictured from left to right: Evan Dick, Michael Strahan, Laura Shepard Churchley, Dylan Taylor, Lane Bess, and Cameron Bess. (Image: Blue Origin)
More than 30 humans have launched with Blue Origin using the same capsule and booster system, including a few celebrities like William Shatner and Michael Strahan. Its last launch with paying customers happened in August 2022.