Please use this topic to discuss Blue Origin's orbital development efforts.
328KF Member
Posts: 1234 From: Registered: Apr 2008
posted 08-24-2011 10:19 AM
On the upcoming Blue Origin test... reading the rest of that NOTAM indicates that the restricted area is only up to 18,000'.
This leads me to wonder exactly what kind of "launch" this will be(?)
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-02-2011 03:26 PM
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Blue Origin test flight "suffered a major failure," according to U.S. government and industry officials, however the test may not have been in support of the company's commercial crew launch services for NASA but rather its aspirations to launch paying tourists.
The vertical takeoff and landing spacecraft, developed by closely held Blue Origin LLC, was on a suborbital flight from the company's West Texas spaceport last week, these officials said, when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle. The exact nature and cause of the failure were unclear, but remnants of the spacecraft could provide clues for investigators.
Parts of the vehicle were recovered on the ground and are now being analyzed by company experts, according to government and industry officials...
A spokesman for Blue Origin, based in Kent, Wash., declined to comment. Officials at both NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration were told in advance about the launch and are aware of the failure, according to people familiar with the matter. But spokesmen for the agencies also declined to comment...
According to NASA, the most recent award to Blue Origin is for work on a vehicle able to transfer up to seven astronauts to the orbiting station — first riding on top of a conventional Atlas V rocket and later powered by the company's reusable booster system intended to "dramatically lower the cost of space access." The federal money is targeted to speed development of a liquid-fueled engine and a novel crew-escape system.
The latest event, however, isn't expected to have a direct impact on Blue Origin's access to federal dollars, government officials said, because the test didn't rely on federal funds and wasn't part of the company's development agreement with NASA. It isn't clear whether Blue Origin hopes to use some of the same hardware in its official NASA-funded work and testing.
cspg Member
Posts: 6210 From: Geneva, Switzerland Registered: May 2006
posted 09-03-2011 01:58 AM
It took them three months to post pictures of their first flight?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-03-2011 08:27 AM
The photos are from their failed test flight last week, though the update first makes mention of a successful test flight flown three months ago.
From the start, Blue Origin has chosen to operate its development program mostly behind closed doors.
Rusty B Member
Posts: 239 From: Sacramento, CA Registered: Oct 2004
posted 09-05-2011 01:06 AM
Looking at Google Maps, satellite picture, 25 miles north of Van Horn, Texas you can spot these features that might be the Blue Origin's Spaceport:
quote:Originally posted by Robert Pearlman: ...a successful test flight flown three months ago.
This video of Blue Origin's "short hop" is fun to watch.
Certainly not the usual sequence for a test launch video.
Editor's note: See another view on Blue Origin's recently updated website.
Hart Sastrowardoyo Member
Posts: 3445 From: Toms River, NJ Registered: Aug 2000
posted 06-29-2012 03:55 PM
Jeff Ashby says he's first in line to fly Blue Origin when it's safe to do so:
Fortune: Will you fly again?
Ashby: I will, but in a new private space vehicle. I'm telling everyone that I'm number one to fly at the little company I work at, and I won't go unless I think it's safe. I'm there to represent the safety of the human beings, so no one else should fly until I do.
dabolton Member
Posts: 419 From: Seneca, IL, US Registered: Jan 2009
posted 10-24-2012 03:57 PM
Watching the suddenness and speed of the escape test, is it expected that any persons onboard would remain conscious from that sudden g-load? Would they awaken before landing.
posted 08-24-2011 10:15 AM
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