The space company Blue Origin of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has tested its new, powerful rocket ‘New Glenn’ for the first time. The approximately 100-meter-high rocket, named after American astronaut John Glenn (1921-2016), took off from the Cape Canaveral spaceport in the American state of Florida.
“This is our first flight and we have prepared thoroughly for it,” Blue Origin said shortly before takeoff on the X platform. “But no amount of ground testing or mission simulations can replace a flight with this rocket.” The main goal of the test launch is to safely reach Earth orbit. “Everything beyond that is the icing on the cake.”
It is ambitious to want to land the rocket in the Atlantic Ocean on the first attempt – “but we will try.” “Whatever happens, we will learn from it, refine it and apply the lessons learned to our next launch.”
According to the company, the first stage of ‘New Glenn’ is designed for a minimum of 25 flights. This will lead to significantly less waste and costs. SpaceX also relies on reusable rocket parts. With other rockets, such as the European launch vehicle Ariane 6, the engines simply fall into the sea.
Competition for SpaceX
In the future, Blue Origin wants to compete with SpaceX, which currently dominates commercial spaceflight. Tech billionaire Elon Musk’s space company has been flying for the American space agency NASA and other customers for years, mainly with its ‘Falcon Heavy’ rocket. The “Falcon Heavy” can transport approximately 64 tons of material.
Source: Krone
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
