Blue Origin New Shepard
Encyclopedia
The Blue Origin New Shepard reusable launch vehicle is a vertical-takeoff, vertical-landing
(VTVL), suborbital manned rocket
that is being developed by Blue Origin
, a company owned by Amazon.com
founder and businessman Jeff Bezos
, as a commercial system for suborbital space tourism
.
The New Shepard makes reference to the first United States
astronaut
in space, Alan Shepard
.
the launch vehicle was to be assembled at the Blue Origin facility near Seattle, Washington. Also in 2006, Blue Origin started the process to build an aerospace testing and operations center on a portion of the Corn Ranch
, a 165000 acres (668 km²) land parcel Bezos purchased 40 km north of Van Horn, Texas
. Blue Origin Project Manager Rob Meyerson has said that he selected Texas as the launch site particularly because of the state's historical connections to the aerospace industry, although that industry is not located near the planned launch site, and the vehicle will not be manufactured in Texas.
A sub-scale demonstration vehicle made its first flight on November 13, 2006.
The New Shepard craft is planned to be a vertical take-off/vertical landing (VTOL
) system. The New Shepard will be controlled entirely by on-board computers, without ground control
. It will be powered by high test peroxide
(HTP) and RP-1
kerosene.
The manned variant would feature a separate crew module that could separate close to peak altitude, and the propulsion module would perform a powered landing while the crew module would land under a parachute
. The crew module can also separate in case of vehicle malfunction or other emergency using solid propellant separation boosters and perform a parachute landing.
. The flight to 285 feet (87 m) in altitude was successful. Videos are available on the Blue Origin website and elsewhere.
takeoff and landing mission) flown in approximately early June.
The vehicle is known only as "PM2" as of August 2011, gleaned from information the company filed with the FAA
prior to it late August high-altitude, high-velocity second test flight. Media have speculated this might mean "Propulsion Module".
The second test vehicle was flown a second time on an August 24, 2011 test flight, in west Texas. It failed when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle. The company recovered remnants of the space craft from ground search.
On 2 Sep 2011, Blue Origin released the results of the cause of the test vehicle failure. As the vehicle reached Mach 1.2
and 45000 feet (13,716 m) altitude, a "flight instability drove an angle of attack
that triggered [the] range safety system
to terminate thrust on the vehicle."
(LAS) and composite pressure vessel
, with the end of the second ground test, Blue Origin completed all work envisioned under the phase 1 contract for the pusher escape system. They also "completed work on the other aspect of its award, risk reduction work on a composite pressure vessel" for the vehicle.
VTVL
Vertical takeoff, vertical landing is a form of takeoff and landing using rockets . Multiple VTVL craft have flown. , at least five VTVL rocket vehicles are currently under development at four different aerospace companies...
(VTVL), suborbital manned rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
that is being developed by Blue Origin
Blue Origin
Blue Origin is a privately funded aerospace company set up by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos. The company was awarded $3.7 million in funding in 2009 by NASA via a Space Act Agreement under the Commercial Crew Development program for development of concepts and technologies to support future human...
, a company owned by Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
founder and businessman Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos
Jeffrey Preston "Jeff" Bezos is the founder, president, chief executive officer , and chairman of the board of Amazon.com.-Early life and background:...
, as a commercial system for suborbital space tourism
Space tourism
Space Tourism is space travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. A number of startup companies have sprung up in recent years, hoping to create a space tourism industry...
.
The New Shepard makes reference to the first United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
in space, Alan Shepard
Alan Shepard
Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. was an American naval aviator, test pilot, flag officer, and NASA astronaut who in 1961 became the second person, and the first American, in space. This Mercury flight was designed to enter space, but not to achieve orbit...
.
the launch vehicle was to be assembled at the Blue Origin facility near Seattle, Washington. Also in 2006, Blue Origin started the process to build an aerospace testing and operations center on a portion of the Corn Ranch
Corn Ranch
Corn Ranch is a spaceport in the West Texas town of Van Horn, Texas, where flight tests of the New Shepard are carried out by Blue Origin. The 165,000-acre land parcel was purchased by Internet billionaire Jeff Bezos. The first flight test took place on November 13, 2006 with the goal of...
, a 165000 acres (668 km²) land parcel Bezos purchased 40 km north of Van Horn, Texas
Van Horn, Texas
Van Horn is a town in and the county seat of Culberson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,435 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Van Horn is located at ....
. Blue Origin Project Manager Rob Meyerson has said that he selected Texas as the launch site particularly because of the state's historical connections to the aerospace industry, although that industry is not located near the planned launch site, and the vehicle will not be manufactured in Texas.
A sub-scale demonstration vehicle made its first flight on November 13, 2006.
Design
VTOL
A vertical take-off and landing aircraft is one that can hover, take off and land vertically. This classification includes fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters and other aircraft with powered rotors, such as cyclogyros/cyclocopters and tiltrotors...
) system. The New Shepard will be controlled entirely by on-board computers, without ground control
Ground control
- Aviation and spaceflight :* Air traffic control, in charge of the controlled areas on an airport*A mission control center, such as the one at Johnson Space Center, responsible for spaceflight- Engineering :...
. It will be powered by high test peroxide
High test peroxide
High-test peroxide or HTP is a high -concentration solution of hydrogen peroxide, with the remainder predominantly made up of water. In contact with a catalyst, it decomposes into a high-temperature mixture of steam and oxygen, with no remaining liquid water...
(HTP) and RP-1
RP-1
RP-1 is a highly refined form of kerosene outwardly similar to jet fuel, used as a rocket fuel. Although having a lower specific impulse than liquid hydrogen , RP-1 is cheaper, can be stored at room temperature, is far less of an explosive hazard and is far denser...
kerosene.
Mission
The New Shepard is expected to be launched vertically from West Texas and then perform a powered flight for about 110 s and to an altitude of 40 km. The craft's momentum would continue to carry it upward in unpowered flight and would decelerate until culminating at an altitude of about 100 km. After reaching apogee the vehicle would perform a descent and restart its main engines a few tens of seconds before vertical landing, close to its launch site. The total mission duration is planned to be 10 minutes.The manned variant would feature a separate crew module that could separate close to peak altitude, and the propulsion module would perform a powered landing while the crew module would land under a parachute
Parachute
A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or in the case of ram-air parachutes, aerodynamic lift. Parachutes are usually made out of light, strong cloth, originally silk, now most commonly nylon...
. The crew module can also separate in case of vehicle malfunction or other emergency using solid propellant separation boosters and perform a parachute landing.
Development
Initial low altitude flight testing (up to 600 m) with subscale prototypes was scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2006. This was later confirmed in a press release by Blue Origin. It could involve up to ten flights. Incremental flight testing to 100 km altitude was planned to be carried out between 2007 and 2009 with increasingly larger and more capable prototypes. The full-scale vehicle was expected to be operational for revenue service in 2010, and could fly up to 50 times a year. Clearance from the FAA is needed before test flights begin, and a separate license is needed before commercial operations begin. The company held a public meeting on 15 June 2006 in Van Horn, as part of the public comment opportunity needed to secure FAA permissions. Blue Origin says that once cleared for commercial operation, they would expect to conduct a maximum rate of 52 launches per year. The RLV would carry three or more passengers per operation.First test vehicle
An initial flight test took place on November 13, 2006 at 6:30 am local time (12:30 UTC); an earlier flight on the 10th being canceled due to winds. This marks the first developmental test flight undertaken by Blue Origin. The flight was by the first prototype vehicle, known as GoddardBlue Origin Goddard
Blue Origin Goddard is the name of the first development vehicle in the Blue Origin New Shepard program, which flew for the first time on November 13, 2006. Named after rocketry pioneer Robert Goddard, the vehicle is a subscale demonstrator and flew at a 285 ft altitude during its initial flight...
. The flight to 285 feet (87 m) in altitude was successful. Videos are available on the Blue Origin website and elsewhere.
Second test vehicle
A second test vehicle made two flights in 2011. The first flight was a short hop (low altitude, VTVLVTVL
Vertical takeoff, vertical landing is a form of takeoff and landing using rockets . Multiple VTVL craft have flown. , at least five VTVL rocket vehicles are currently under development at four different aerospace companies...
takeoff and landing mission) flown in approximately early June.
The vehicle is known only as "PM2" as of August 2011, gleaned from information the company filed with the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
prior to it late August high-altitude, high-velocity second test flight. Media have speculated this might mean "Propulsion Module".
The second test vehicle was flown a second time on an August 24, 2011 test flight, in west Texas. It failed when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle. The company recovered remnants of the space craft from ground search.
On 2 Sep 2011, Blue Origin released the results of the cause of the test vehicle failure. As the vehicle reached Mach 1.2
Mach number
Mach number is the speed of an object moving through air, or any other fluid substance, divided by the speed of sound as it is in that substance for its particular physical conditions, including those of temperature and pressure...
and 45000 feet (13,716 m) altitude, a "flight instability drove an angle of attack
Angle of attack
Angle of attack is a term used in fluid dynamics to describe the angle between a reference line on a lifting body and the vector representing the relative motion between the lifting body and the fluid through which it is moving...
that triggered [the] range safety system
Range Safety and Telemetry System
Range Safety and Telemetry System is a GPS based, S-band telemetry receiving and UHF command destruct system, with two 5.4-meter telemetry and command destruct auto-tracking antennas. The system built by Honeywell International...
to terminate thrust on the vehicle."
Involvement with NASA Commercial Crew Development Program
Additionally, Blue Origin received in CCDev phase 1 to advance several development objectives of its innovative 'pusher' Launch Abort SystemLaunch escape system
A Launch Escape System is a top-mounted rocket connected to the crew module of a crewed spacecraft and used to quickly separate the crew module from the rest of the rocket in case of emergency. Since the escape rockets are above the crew module, an LES typically uses separate nozzles which are...
(LAS) and composite pressure vessel
Pressure vessel
A pressure vessel is a closed container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different from the ambient pressure.The pressure differential is dangerous and many fatal accidents have occurred in the history of their development and operation. Consequently, their design,...
, with the end of the second ground test, Blue Origin completed all work envisioned under the phase 1 contract for the pusher escape system. They also "completed work on the other aspect of its award, risk reduction work on a composite pressure vessel" for the vehicle.
NASA sRLV program
, Blue Origin has submitted the New Shepard reusable launch vehicle for use as an unmanned rocket for NASA's suborbital reusable launch vehicle (sRLV) solicitation under NASA's Flight Operations Program. Blue Origin projects 100 km (62.1 mi) altitude in flights of approximately ten minutes duration, while carrying an 11.3 kg (24.9 lb) research payload.Website
A simple web site was published in June or 2007 at domain public.blueorigin.com, but was moved to blueorigin.com shortly after the first launch in November of that year.See also
- Reusable Vehicle TestingReusable Vehicle TestingThe Reusable Vehicle Testing project was conducted by the Japanese Space Agency from 1998 until 2003. The project involved a series of experimental vehicles to test repeated flights of a reusable rocket. Four complete vehicles were developed during the project...
program by JAXA - Interorbital SystemsInterorbital SystemsInterorbital Systems Corporation is an American aerospace company based in Mojave, California. It was founded in 1996 by Roderick and Randa Milliron, who also co-founded Trans Lunar Research....
- McDonnell Douglas DC-XMcDonnell Douglas DC-XThe DC-X, short for Delta Clipper or Delta Clipper Experimental, was an unmanned prototype of a reusable single stage to orbit launch vehicle built by McDonnell Douglas in conjunction with the United States Department of Defense's Strategic Defense Initiative Organization from 1991 to 1993...
- Quad (rocket)Quad (rocket)In rocketry, the Armadillo aerospace Quad vehicle is a computer controlled VTVL rocket that is used to compete in the Lunar Lander Challenge.-General description:...
- Zarya
- Kankoh-maruKankoh-maruThe is the name of a proposed vertical takeoff and landing, single-stage to orbit, reusable launch vehicle family of rockets, and the spacecraft tour vehicle designed to be boosted by said rocket.-Details:...
- Lunar Lander Challenge
External links
- Blue Origin Official Website
- Images and videos of GoddardBlue Origin GoddardBlue Origin Goddard is the name of the first development vehicle in the Blue Origin New Shepard program, which flew for the first time on November 13, 2006. Named after rocketry pioneer Robert Goddard, the vehicle is a subscale demonstrator and flew at a 285 ft altitude during its initial flight...
- Blue's Rocket Clues (MSNBC's Cosmic Log, June 24, 2006)
- Latest Blue Origin news on the Space Fellowship
- Secretive Spaceship Builder's Plans Hinted at in NASA Agreement Commercial Crew Development Blue Origin (2 New craft images)
- Future & Fantasy Spaceships Primed for Launch Commercial, Orbital Spacecraft (See Page 6)