Info: Blue Origin scrubbed the launch attempt on January 28 because of thick clouds and an additional issue related to the booster’s avionics. A new launch target is forthcoming.
Blue Origin’s next New Shepard flight, NS-29, will simulate the Moon’s gravity and fly 30 payloads, all but one focused on testing lunar-related technologies. The launch window opens on Tuesday, January 28, at 10:00 AM CST / 1600 UTC, 17:00 CET from Launch Site One in West Texas.
The Space Affairs Livestream will begin 15 minutes before liftoff.
The payloads will experience at least two minutes of lunar gravity forces, a first for New Shepard and made possible partly through NASA’s support. The flight will test six broad lunar technology areas: In-situ resource utilization, dust mitigation, advanced habitation systems, sensors and instrumentation, small spacecraft technologies, and entry descent and landing. Proving these technologies at a lower cost is another step toward Blue Origin’s mission to lower the cost of access to space for the benefit of Earth. It also enables NASA and other lunar surface technology providers to test innovations critical to achieving Artemis program goals and exploring the Moon’s surface.
The New Shepard crew capsule uses its Reaction Control System (RCS) to spin up to approximately 11 revolutions per minute. This spin rate simulates one-sixth of Earth’s gravity at the midpoint of the crew capsule lockers. In simulated lunar gravity, customers can accelerate their learning and technology readiness for lunar payloads at much lower cost. Previously, the Moon’s gravity could only be simulated a few seconds at a time via centrifuge drop tower or for ~20 seconds aboard parabolic flights.
New Shepard’s 29th flight brings the total number of commercial payloads flown on New Shepard to more than 175. Of the mission’s 30 payloads, 29 will fly inside the crew capsule and one will fly on the booster with exposure to the ambient space environment. More than half are supported by NASA’s Flight Opportunities program, managed by the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. Four payloads are from Honeybee Robotics, a division within Blue Origin’s In-Space Systems business. Honeybee’s experiments will test technologies focused on penetrating, excavating, and processing lunar regolith.
This mission will fly our dedicated payload capsule paired with our recently debuted booster, demonstrating the compatibility between our fleet’s boosters and capsules and increasing launch availability for our customers. We now have three capsules and two boosters to better address sales demand for payloads and astronauts.
The mission will also carry thousands of postcards on behalf of Club for the Future, Blue Origin’s STEAM-focused nonprofit whose mission is to inspire and mobilize future generations to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. The organization has engaged more than 44 million people globally since its founding in 2019
About New Shepard by Blue Origin
Function: Launching tourists and cargo on a suborbital trajectory
Manufacturer: Blue Origin
Country of origin: United States of America
Height: 19.2m (63ft)
Diameter: 3.8 m (12.5 ft)
Mass: 75,000 kg (165,000 lb)
Stages: 1
Launch sites: Launch Site One, West Texas
Total launches: 28
Success(es): 27
Failure(s): 1
Landings: 26
First flight: 29 April 2015; 9 years ago
Single stage
Powered by 1 × BE-3
Maximum thrust: 490 kN (110,000 lbf)
Burn time: 141 seconds
Propellant: LH2 / LOX
All rockets take off; not all rockets land. Named after astronaut Alan Shepard, the first American in space, New Shepard is Blue Origin’s fully reusable, suborbital rocket system built for human flight from the beginning. During the 11-minute journey, astronauts soar past the Kármán line (100 km/62 miles), the internationally recognized boundary of space, experiencing several minutes of weightlessness and witnessing life-changing views of Earth. The vehicle is fully autonomous—there are no pilots.
Crew Capsule
Pressurized crew capsule with room for six people, environmentally controlled for comfort, and among the largest windows to have flown in space.
Ring & Wedge Fins
Aerodynamically designed to stabilize the booster and reduce fuel use on its flight back to Earth.
Drag Brakes
Deploy from the ring fin to reduce the booster’s speed by half on its descent from space.
BE-3PM Engine
Propels the rocket to space and restarts to uniquely slow the booster down to just 6 mph (9.7 km/h) for a controlled pinpoint landing on the pad.
Aft Fins
Stabilize the vehicle during ascent, steer it back to the landing pad on descent, and guide the rocket through airspeeds over Mach 3.
Landing Gear
Deploys for touchdown.
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