WASHINGTON | The Blue Origin rocket launcher crashed shortly after launch Monday in west Texas, Jeff Bezos’ company said, adding that the capsule could separate from the rest of the rocket.
“Launcher malfunction during unmanned flight today,” the company first announced, then adding that the capsule’s ejection system worked as expected.
“There were no injuries,” said Blue Origin.
A video shows the capsule activating its emergency engines and ejecting from the main launcher at full speed about a minute after launch, then, accompanied by parachutes, making a hard landing.
The video doesn’t show what became of the launcher, the company writes that he “fell to the ground” while having to gently stand upright again if successful.
The unmanned capsule carried only research equipment for this mission, titled “New Shepard 23”.
The American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it has blocked any further launch of this missile while the investigation is ongoing.
“The capsule landed safely and the launch vehicle landed in the danger zone,” the agency wrote.
It was the 23rd mission for the company, the first to end in failure. It’s a blow to the space tourism company run by Amazon’s founder.
Jeff Bezos himself took part in New Shepard’s first manned flight in July 2021. Since then, the machine has transported around thirty people, including the actor who plays the emblematic Captain Kirk of the Star Trek series, William Shatner.
At the beginning of August, the company had successfully sent the first Egyptian and the first Portuguese into space, an experience of just a few minutes in weightlessness.
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