Recently, Blue Origin launched its New Shepard suborbital rocket into the skies over west Texas. The flight was the 13th time a version of the New Shepard flew into space, the 12th time it was entirely successful. The flight was one more small step toward making Blue Origin a major launch company that could compete with SpaceX.
The New Shepard contained several technology experiments, including a lunar landing system that contained a lidar suite, a computer and a terrain recognition system as well as a heat shield that could be used on the upcoming orbital New Glenn rocket. The spacecraft also contained several experiments that, according to the Verge, included a microgravity aquatic garden and a prototype system for asteroid mining. The capsule carried numerous postcards created by school children imagining what a space future might be like. The flight flew to an altitude of 66 miles and took just over 10 minutes.
One payload that the New Shepard did not carry was people. The spacecraft was originally envisioned as being a capsule that would take the well-heeled and adventurous past the edge of space, to briefly experience microgravity and a magnificent view of the Earth before landing again. The first launch of a New Shepard with passengers is currently envisioned for 2021.
Besides New Shepard, Blue Origin has two projects that, when brought to fruition, may make it a competitor to SpaceX, currently the most famous and likely most profitable entrepreneurial space launch company.
New Glenn is a planned two-stage launch vehicle, said to have capabilities that are comparable to the Falcon Heavy and the Delta IV Heavy. Development of the heavy lift launch vehicle has been funded by Blue Origin CEO Jeff BezosJeffrey (Jeff) Preston BezosBlue Origin takes one small step toward being a competitor to SpaceX Democrats question Amazon over reported interference of workers' rights to organize Hillicon Valley: Twitter lacked adequate cybersecurity protection ahead of July hacks, regulator says | Twitter, Facebook clamp down on New York Post article about Hunter Biden | YouTube bans COVID-19 vaccine misinformation MORE, as well as the United States Air Force and the United States Space Force. The first stage will be reusable, so it will have to operate much like the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy first stage, in that it will return to Earth and land vertically. New Glenn is aimed at commercial, military and NASA markets. Currently, the first flight is scheduled for 2021.
The Blue Moon lunar lander has a cargo and a crew variant, the latter of which is Blue Origins entree into the Human Landing System competition. The lunar lander is a three-stage vehicle, consisting of a transfer stage, a descent stage and an ascent stage that could put both cargo and astronauts on the lunar surface. Blue Moon has received some NASA funding and, if it makes the further cut, will receive more. The lunar lander may become the vehicle that astronauts use to land on the moon as early as 2024.
Blue Origin is also considering getting into the commercial space station business. NASA has suggested that when the International Space Station (ISS) reaches the end of its useful life, it would like to be a customer of commercial space stations, creating a new industry in low Earth orbit.
Bezos is starting his version of SpaceXs Starlink, a satellite internet system dubbed Kuiper, under the Amazon corporate structure, the plan for which was recently approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
SpaceX is not the only commercial space company around, but it is the one that garners the most media attention and popular excitement. The companys development of a new spacecraft, known as Starship, in Boca Chica, Texas, has especially caught peoples attention. Elon MuskElon Reeve MuskBlue Origin takes one small step toward being a competitor to SpaceX Virgin Hyperloop to build new certification center in West Virginia SpaceX awarded contract to build US military tracking satellites MOREs ambitions for Starship include its use as a transport to build a city on Mars.
Bezos certainly has the deep pockets to make Blue Origin a peer competitor of SpaceX. Money buys engineering talent and everything else needed to create rockets. If the New Glenn and the Blue Moon can perform, Musk will have to look over his shoulder at Blue Origin coming up on his six, as they say in the military.
The idea that competition is a good thing in a capitalist system is something that has been understood as far back as Adam SmithDavid (Adam) Adam SmithBlue Origin takes one small step toward being a competitor to SpaceX Overnight Defense: Pentagon IG to audit use of COVID-19 funds on contractors | Dems optimistic on blocking Trump's Germany withdrawal | Obama slams Trump on foreign policy Watchdog to audit Pentagon's use of COVID-19 funds on defense contractors MORE in the 18th century. One well-funded space launch company has captured the worlds imagination, pioneering rocket reusability and creating the first privately developed heavy lift vehicle. Two such companies, competing for the same customers, creating new space-based business lines, spurring one another on to innovate and cut costs, has the potential to change human civilization for the better.
Blue Origin vs SpaceX would be an open-ended space race that could help take humanity across the Solar System and, ultimately, to the stars.
Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space and politics, has published a political study of space exploration entitled Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? as well as The Moon, Mars and Beyond. He blogs at Curmudgeons Corner. He is published in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Hill, USA Today, the LA Times, and the Washington Post, among other venues.
Continue reading here:
Blue Origin takes one small step toward being a competitor to SpaceX | TheHill - The Hill
- SpaceX cleared for third Starship test flight from Texas - Fox Weather - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- SpaceX to launch 3rd Starship test from Texas on Thursday - Texas Standard - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- SpaceX's third Starship test flight gets FAA green light - Reuters - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- SpaceX is gearing up for its third Starship launch, pending weather conditions - Houston Chronicle - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- Texas Standard for March 13, 2024: Will third time be the charm for SpaceX's Starship launch from Boca Chica? - Texas Standard - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- Elon Musk appears to be launching an Ad Astra school in Texas this summer - Business Insider - March 14th, 2024 [March 14th, 2024]
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Department scheduled to vote on land swap deal with SpaceX next week - San Antonio Express-News - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- SpaceX wants to launch Starship 9 times this year - Beaumont Enterprise - February 24th, 2024 [February 24th, 2024]
- Texas Billionaire's Push for Land Swap With Elon's SpaceX Is Total Crap - Gizmodo - February 11th, 2024 [February 11th, 2024]
- Organizations Win Appeal Against Texas GLO & Cameron County for Closing Boca Chica Beach For SpaceX - Texas Border Business - February 11th, 2024 [February 11th, 2024]
- Walmart gift card scam in Texas leads to 4 arrests - mySA - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- British consul gets taste of Waco and Dr Pepper on Texas road ... - Waco Tribune-Herald - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Elon Musk Reportedly Tapped Tesla Funds to Build Himself a ... - House Beautiful - July 19th, 2023 [July 19th, 2023]
- Boca Chica State Park Is A Hidden Texas Beach Covered In Seashells - March 4th, 2023 [March 4th, 2023]
- Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, Texas - BeachCatcher.com - December 2nd, 2022 [December 2nd, 2022]
- EXCLUSIVE: SpaceX closing South Texas public beach for entire workweek ... - October 23rd, 2022 [October 23rd, 2022]
- Elon Musks New Permanent Home Is a $50,000 BoxTake a ... - Observer - October 23rd, 2022 [October 23rd, 2022]
- Chevy Bolt EV lives with record sales, GM wants to increase production - Electrek.co - October 6th, 2022 [October 6th, 2022]
- NASA, SpaceX to study feasibility of boosting beleaguered Hubble Space Telescope into higher orbit - Fox News - October 6th, 2022 [October 6th, 2022]
- SpaceX satellite biz banking on South Texas Starship launch - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- The Space X Starbase Is Shaping the Community Around it - Jalopnik - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Spells Out 2 'Giant Kahunas' He Hopes To Accomplish In 2022: 'Will Require Insane Work By Many - Benzinga - August 23rd, 2022 [August 23rd, 2022]
- Elon Musk actually lives in tiny 37k house as he jokes about buying Man United - The Mirror - August 23rd, 2022 [August 23rd, 2022]
- Testing at SpaceX Boca Chica Site Ends with Explosion - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- SpaceX booster test explosion, fire slows companys progress toward ... - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- SpaceX performs hot fire tests on Starship and super heavy, this time without a fireball - Orlando Sentinel - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Tesla needs nickel to dominate the car industry. It just signed a $5 billion deal with the metals largest source - Fortune - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Hopes To Build Self-sustaining City on Mars in 20 Years - Gizchina.com - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk Moves To Very Modest $40k House, Wealthiest Man On the Planet Wants To See How Its Like To Live Normally' - The Overtimer - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- It's Only July and SpaceX Has Already Shattered Its Annual Launch Record - Gizmodo - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Commissioners Court expected to vote on resolution in support of SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy project - Brownsville Herald - July 17th, 2022 [July 17th, 2022]
- Elon Musk and Starship: eight things to know about the Mars rocket - The National - July 17th, 2022 [July 17th, 2022]
- Tesla asks Texans to avoid charging their EVs during peak times because of the heatwave - The Verge - July 17th, 2022 [July 17th, 2022]
- Republicans Flip Another Hispanic Texas House Seat - July 4th, 2022 [July 4th, 2022]
- Alibaba joins rivals in offering tool for those under pressure to reduce carbon emissions - The Register - July 4th, 2022 [July 4th, 2022]
- Shock GOP House win in Texas suggests big red wave in November - New York Post - June 22nd, 2022 [June 22nd, 2022]
- Elon Musk says he voted Republican for the first time in Mayra Flores' Texas special election - Houston Chronicle - June 15th, 2022 [June 15th, 2022]
- Starship Will Spit out Starlinks Like a Candy Dispenser - Universe Today - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- 5 Beaches In Texas You Have To Visit This Summer - Reform Austin - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- SpaceX might be back on target with Starship in Texas - EarthSky - May 17th, 2022 [May 17th, 2022]
- Tesla May Have The Location of Its Next Factory - TheStreet - May 17th, 2022 [May 17th, 2022]
- Kids space camp to launch in the RGV - KVEO-TV - May 11th, 2022 [May 11th, 2022]
- Army Corps withdraws SpaceX application for Starbase complex in Boca Chica, Texas - Stars and Stripes - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Elon Musks Starbase in Texas sits on land once pitched to Chicago Polish retirees by Polish radios John C - Chicago Sun-Times - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Big tech conferences arent coming back - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Angry Twitter employees are going to grill Elon Musk at a company town hall - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- UTSA Invests in Space Research, Seeks SpaceX Partnership - Government Technology - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Robinhood gave its users a crypto wallet. Why did its stock drop? - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Amazon plans to accuse union victors of coercing voters - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- This is not a drill: Twitter is testing an edit button - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Epic Games and Lego team up to build a 'family-friendly' metaverse - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Activision Blizzard is giving its contract QA testers full-time jobs and pay raises - Protocol - April 9th, 2022 [April 9th, 2022]
- Congressman Says Dont Worry About SpaceX Leaving Texas - Government Technology - April 4th, 2022 [April 4th, 2022]
- SpaceX Ends Production of Crew Dragon, America's Only Human-Rated Spacecraft - The Drive - April 4th, 2022 [April 4th, 2022]
- Governor Abbott touts Port of Brownsville as solution to US supply chain issues - KRLD - April 4th, 2022 [April 4th, 2022]
- The ABC's Of 3D House Printing - liherald.com - April 4th, 2022 [April 4th, 2022]
- Starship Could be Ready for an Orbital Flight in May - Universe Today - March 29th, 2022 [March 29th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Is Sick With The Coronavirus Once Again Compares It To Mythical King - Wccftech - March 29th, 2022 [March 29th, 2022]
- The ABC's Of 3D House Printing | Ftluptonpress.com - Fort Lupton Press - March 29th, 2022 [March 29th, 2022]
- Texas Democrat Filemon Vela, Who Already Said He Would Not Seek Reelection, Will Resign Early From Congress - Forbes - March 29th, 2022 [March 29th, 2022]
- Elon Musk reveals 'there are times when I feel lonely' in interview - Insider - March 27th, 2022 [March 27th, 2022]
- Musk Tweets and Texas Gateway to Mars Changes Forever - BollyInside - March 27th, 2022 [March 27th, 2022]
- Tesla's Elon Musk May Be The World's First Trillionaire By 2024 - InsideEVs - March 27th, 2022 [March 27th, 2022]
- Elon Musk sets date for 1st spaceflight with Starship megarocket that will one day take astronauts to Mars... - The US Sun - March 23rd, 2022 [March 23rd, 2022]
- See SpaceX's Starship Mars rocket fully stacked for testing on the pad (photos) - Space.com - March 23rd, 2022 [March 23rd, 2022]
- On His Way to Theoretically Colonize Mars, Elon Musk Is Actually Colonizing South Texas - Jacobin magazine - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- Tesla confirms it will hold what could be the largest BBQ in Texas history - Teslarati - February 24th, 2022 [February 24th, 2022]
- Elon Musk wants to tunnel under Texas - The Real Deal - February 24th, 2022 [February 24th, 2022]
- What Matthew McConaughey got wrong about the new space age - Washington Examiner - February 24th, 2022 [February 24th, 2022]
- SpaceX goes all-in on Starship configuration for second-gen Starlink - SpaceNews - January 17th, 2022 [January 17th, 2022]
- Elon Musk says he's single and basically living in a 'technology monastery' following his split with Grimes - Yahoo Movies Canada - December 19th, 2021 [December 19th, 2021]
- Elon Musk looks to Earths atmosphere as a source of SpaceX rocket fuel made from CO2 - San Antonio Express-News - December 19th, 2021 [December 19th, 2021]
- SpaceX vs. the world - SpaceNews - December 19th, 2021 [December 19th, 2021]
- Villarreal & Villarreal: Sen. Lucio is going to be a hard act to follow - Rio Grande Guardian - December 19th, 2021 [December 19th, 2021]
- What it's like to visit South Padre Island in Texas - Insider - December 15th, 2021 [December 15th, 2021]
- From Waco to Boca Chica: Elon Musk - TIME's 2021 Person of the Year - and his impact in Texas - WFAA.com - December 15th, 2021 [December 15th, 2021]
- 2021 Was the Weirdest Year in Space Ever - Gizmodo - December 15th, 2021 [December 15th, 2021]
- Elon Musk's 'primary home' in Texas revealed to be a ... - December 10th, 2021 [December 10th, 2021]
- Texas Highland Lakes - Wikipedia - December 10th, 2021 [December 10th, 2021]
- SpaceX offered $150K for Texas house, owner says it's a lowball offer - Business Insider - December 10th, 2021 [December 10th, 2021]