Blue Origin on Monday vertically landed its New Shepard space vehicle at its west Texas launch site after reaching an altitude of roughly 100 km, or 329,839 feet, according to a company statement.
New Shepard’s top speed was Mach 3.72 after being launched at 12:21 p.m. EST. Re-ignition of the rocket booster took place at 4,896 feet above ground. A controlled landing of the booster took place at 4.4 mph. Deployment of the crew capsule drogue parachutes took place at 20,045 feet above ground level while landing of the crew capsule under parachutes took place at 12:32 p.m. EST.
Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos said in a statement New Shepard contended with 119 mph high altitude crosswinds to make a “gentle, controlled landing” just 4.5 feet from the center of the pad. The New Shepard vertical takeoff and vertical landing (VTVL) rocket will eventually carry six astronauts to altitudes beyond 100 km, the internationally-recognized boundary of space.
Eric Stallmer, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, said Tuesday in an interview that Blue Origin’s vehicle landing was a watershed moment for the commercial space industry.
“It’s quite the evolution in the way we do our rockets and the way we’re going to do business in space,” Stallmer said. “I think it’s going to move the industry that much forward, help reduce the cost and showcase that this technology can be done.”