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Wikipedia

Blue Origin

March 08, 2023

Blue Origin LLC. is an privately funded American aerospace manufacturer and sub-orbital spaceflight services company headquartered in Kent, Washington.[3] The company produces Rocket Engines, Rockets and other components.

Blue Origin, LLC
Feather logo
TypeLimited liability company
IndustryAerospace and Defense
FoundedSeptember 8, 2000; 22 years ago (September 8, 2000)
FounderJeff Bezos
Headquarters
Kent, Washington
,
U.S.
Key people
Bob Smith (CEO)[1]
OwnerJeff Bezos
Number of employees
>6,000[2] (2022)
WebsiteBlueOrigin.com

Although headquartered in Kent, Washington, the company also operates a 600,000sqft factory with over 1,000 employees in Huntsville, Alabama where it creates many of its products. The company operates its Orbital Launch Site (OLS) from Merritt Island, Florida and the Space Coast also in Florida, USA.

The company has Launch capabilities 30.1 miles North of Van Horn, Texas at Launch Site One and at the Orbital Launch Site (OLS) at the Space Coast Station in Florida.

History

 
Blue Origin's Coat of Arms

Blue Origin was founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos, the founder and executive chairman of Amazon. The company states that it aims to make access to space cheaper and more reliable through reusable launch vehicles.[4][5]

The company primarily employs an incremental approach from suborbital to orbital flight,[3] with each developmental step building on its prior work.

Blue Origin moved into the orbital spaceflight technology development business in 2014, initially as a rocket engine supplier for others via a contractual agreement to build a new large rocket engine, the BE-4, for major US launch system operator United Launch Alliance (ULA). Blue Origin said the "BE-4 would be 'ready for flight' by 2017."[6] By 2015, Blue Origin had announced plans to also manufacture and fly its orbital launch vehicle, known as the New Glenn, from the Florida Space Coast. BE-4 had been expected to complete engine qualification testing by late 2018.[7]

On July 20, 2021, the company successfully completed its first crewed mission, Blue Origin NS-16, into space using its New Shepard launch vehicle. The flight was approximately 10 minutes and crossed the Kármán line.

New Shepard performed six crewed flights between July 2021 and August 2022, taking a mix of sponsored celebrities such as Wally Funk and William Shatner, and paying customers. New Shepard ticket sales brought in $50 million through to June 2022.[8] On September 2022, an uncrewed mission of the New Shepard failed due to the failure of the BE-3 main engine. The launch escape system triggered and the capsule landed safely. The remaining New Shepard vehicles were grounded pending an FAA investigation into the incident.[9]

Launch vehicles

New Shepard

 
New Shepard launch on April 29, 2015

Blue Origin's uses suborbital spaceflight and makes money from Tourism launches from Launch Site One. New Shepard is composed of two vehicles, a crew capsule and a rocket booster with 1 BE-3 engine.

New Shepard lifts off and after gaining enough speed and attitude to pass the Kármán line, the booster along with the rocket separate during flight. After separation, the booster is designed to return to Earth to perform a vertical landing while the crew capsule follows a separate trajectory, passes the Kármán line and then returns to Earth and parachutes are used for a soft landing. The Booster lands first, followed by the crew capsule less than 5 minutes later. The landing occurs approximately 50 feet from the booster. New Shepard is also intended to provide frequent opportunities for researchers to fly experiments into suborbital space.[10]

 
New Shepard landing with parachutes on April 29, 2015

On July 20, 2021, the New Shepard performed its first crewed mission into space. The flight was approximately 10 minutes and crossed the Kármán lineThe passengers were Jeff Bezos, his brother Mark Bezos, Wally Funk, and Oliver Daemen, after the unnamed auction winner (later revealed to have been Justin Sun[11]) dropped out due to a scheduling conflict. The second and third crewed missions of New Shepard took place in October and December 2021, respectively. Fourth crewed flight happened in March 2022.[12] On June 4, 2022, New Shepard completed its fifth crewed mission launch after the delayed voyage previous month.[13] The sixth crewed flight took place on August 4, 2022.

New Glenn

The New Glenn is an upcoming Rocket from Blue Origin that is a two-stage orbital launch vehicle that is expected to launch sometime in 2024.

The design work on the vehicle began in 2012. The high-level specifications for the vehicle were publicly announced in September 2016.[14] The first stage will be powered by seven BE-4 engines, also designed and manufactured by Blue Origin. The first stage is reusable, just like the New Shepard suborbital launch vehicle that preceded it. The second stage is intended to be expendable.[14] Blue Origin intends to launch the rocket from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 36.

The New Glenn Rocket will stand 300 Feet tall when Vertical and will have the most cargo capacity of any other Rocket in the world. The Rocket has extremely high availably launch capabilities. "The 7-meter fairing has two times the payload volume of any existing launch vehicle, which means more room for satellites and the freedom to build in more capacity. New Glenn is also able to launch and land in 95% of weather conditions, making it a reliable option for payload customers."

Early test vehicles

Charon

 
Charon on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.

Blue Origin's first flight test vehicle, called Charon after Pluto's moon,[15] was powered by four vertically mounted Rolls-Royce Viper Mk. 301 jet engines rather than rockets. The low-altitude vehicle was developed to test autonomous guidance and control technologies, and the processes that the company would use to develop its later rockets. Charon made its only test flight at Moses Lake, Washington on March 5, 2005. It flew to an altitude of 96 m (316 ft) before returning for a controlled landing near the liftoff point.[16][17]

As of 2016, Charon is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.[18]

Goddard

The next test vehicle, named Goddard (also known as PM1), first flew on November 13, 2006. The flight was successful. A test flight for December 2 never launched.[19][20] According to Federal Aviation Administration records, two further flights were performed by Goddard.[21]

PM2

Another early suborbital test vehicle, PM2, had two flight tests in 2011 in west Texas. The vehicle designation may be short for "Propulsion Module".[22]

The first flight was a short hop (low altitude, VTVL takeoff and landing mission) flown on May 6, 2011. The second flight, August 24, 2011, failed when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle. Blue Origin released its analysis of the failure nine days later. As the vehicle reached a speed of Mach 1.2 and 14 km (46,000 ft) altitude, a "flight instability drove an angle of attack that triggered [the] range safety system to terminate thrust on the vehicle".[23]

Orbital Subsystems and Earlier Development Work

Blue Origin began developing systems for orbital human spacecraft prior to 2012. A reusable first-stage booster was projected to fly a suborbital trajectory, taking off vertically like the booster stage of a conventional multistage rocket. Following stage separation, the upper stage would continue to propel astronauts to orbit while the first-stage booster would descend to perform a powered vertical landing similar to the New Shepard suborbital Propulsion Module. The first-stage booster would be refueled and launched again, allowing improved reliability and lowering the cost of human access to space.[24]

The booster rocket was projected to loft Blue Origin's biconic Space Vehicle to orbit, carrying astronauts and supplies. After orbiting the Earth, the Space Vehicle will reenter Earth's atmosphere to land on land under parachutes, and then be reused on future missions to Earth orbit.[24]

Blue Origin successfully completed a System Requirements Review (SRR) of its orbital Space Vehicle in May 2012.[25]

Engine testing for the Reusable Booster System (RBS) vehicle began in 2012. A full-power test of the thrust chamber for Blue Origin BE-3 liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen rocket engine was conducted at a NASA test facility in October 2012. The chamber successfully achieved full thrust of 100,000 pounds-force (about 440 kN).[26]

Other projects

New Armstrong

At the time of the announcement of New Glenn in 2016, Jeff Bezos revealed that the next project after New Glenn would be called New Armstrong, without detailing what that would be. Media have speculated that New Armstrong would be a launch vehicle named after Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the Moon.[27][28]

Blue Moon

The Blue Moon lander is a crew-carrying lunar lander unveiled in 2019.[29] The standard version of the lander is intended to transport 3.6 t (7,900 lb) to the lunar surface whereas a "stretched tank variant" could land up to 6.5 t (14,000 lb) on the Moon, both making a soft landing. The lander will use the BE-7 hydrolox engine.[30]

Orbital Reef

On October 25, 2021, Blue Origin announced that together with Sierra Space it would build a "Mixed-use space business park" in LEO called Orbital Reef, to "open multiple new markets in space, [and] provide anyone with the opportunity to establish their own address on orbit." It "will offer research, industrial, international, and commercial customers the cost competitive end-to-end services they need including space transportation and logistics, space habitation, equipment accommodation, and operations including onboard crew. The station will start operating in the second half of this decade."[31] Further partners are Boeing, Redwire Space, Genesis Engineering Solutions, and Arizona State University.[32]

Rocket engines

Following Aerojet's acquisition of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne in 2012, Blue Origin president Rob Meyerson saw an opportunity to fill a gap in the defense industrial base. Blue Origin publicly entered the liquid rocket engine business by partnering with ULA on the development of the BE-4, and working with other companies. Meyerson announced the selection of Huntsville, Alabama as the location of Blue Origin's rocket production factory in June 2017.[33][34]

BE-1

Blue Engine 1, or BE-1, was the first rocket engine developed by Blue Origin and was used on the company's Goddard development vehicle. The pressure-fed monopropellant engine was powered by peroxide and produced 9.8 kN (2,200 lbf) of thrust.[35][36]

BE-2

Blue Engine 2, or BE-2, was a pump-fed bipropellant engine burning kerosene and peroxide which produced 140 kN (31,000 lbf) of thrust.[35][36] Five BE-2 engines powered Blue Origin's PM-2 development vehicle on two test flights in 2011.[37]

BE-3

Main article: BE-3

Blue Origin publicly announced the development of the Blue Engine 3, or BE-3, in January 2013, but the engine had begun development in the early 2010s. BE-3 is a new liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen (LH2/LOX) cryogenic engine that can produce 490 kN (110,000 lbf) of thrust at full power, and can be throttled down to as low as 110 kN (25,000 lbf) for use in controlled vertical landings.[38] Early thrust chamber testing began at NASA Stennis[39] in 2013.[40]

By late 2013, the BE-3 had been successfully tested on a full-duration suborbital burn, with simulated coast phases and engine relights, "demonstrating deep throttle, full power, long-duration and reliable restart all in a single-test sequence."[38] NASA has released a video of the test.[40] As of December 2013, the engine had demonstrated more than 160 starts and 9,100 seconds (2.5 h) of operation at Blue Origin's test facility near Van Horn, Texas.[38][41]

BE-3 engine acceptance testing was completed by April 2015 with 450 test firings of the engine and a cumulative run time of more than 30,000 seconds (8.3 h). The BE-3 engine powers the New Shepard space capsule that is being used for Blue Origin suborbital flights that began in 2015.[42]

BE-3U

The BE-3U engine is a modified BE-3 for use on upper stages of Blue Origin orbital launch vehicles. The engine will include a nozzle better optimized for operation under vacuum conditions as well as a number of other manufacturing differences since it is an expendable engine whereas the BE-3 is designed for reusability.[43]

BE-4

 
BE-4 rocket engine, on display at the 34th Space Symposium, April 2018. It was the first BE-4 to be hotfire tested, on October 18, 2017.

Blue Origin began work on a new and much larger rocket engine in 2011. The new engine, the Blue Engine 4, or BE-4 that will combust liquid oxygen and liquid methane propellants. The engine has been designed to produce 2,400 kN (550,000 lbf) of thrust.

In late 2014, Blue Origin signed an agreement with United Launch Alliance (ULA) to co-develop the BE-4 engine, and to commit to use the new engine on an upgraded Atlas V launch vehicle, replacing the single RD-180 Russian-made engine. The new launch vehicle will use two of the 2,400 kN (550,000 lbf) BE-4 engines on each first stage. The engine development program began in 2011.[44][45]

On October 31, 2022, a Twitter post by the official Blue Origin account announced that the first two BE-4 engines had been delivered to ULA and were in the process of being integrated on a Vulcan rocket. In a later tweet, ULA CEO Tory Bruno said that one of the engines had already been installed on the booster, and that the other would be joining it momentarily.[46]

BE-7

The BE-7 engine, currently under development, is being designed for use on a lunar lander.[47] Its first ignition tests[48] were performed June 2019. The BE-7 is designed to produce 40 kN (10,000 lbf) of thrust and have a deep throttle range, making it less powerful than the other engines Blue Origin has in development/production, but this low thrust is advantageous for its intended purpose as a Lunar vehicle descent stage main propulsion system as it offers greater control for soft landings.

The engine uses hydrogen and oxygen propellants in a dual-expander combustion cycle, similar to the more typical expander cycle used by the RL-10 and others, which in theory offers better performance and allows each pump to run at independent flow rates. Blue Origin plans to use additive manufacturing technology to produce the combustion chamber of the engine, which would allow them to more cheaply construct the complex cooling channels required to keep the engine from melting and to produce the hot gasses that will power the pumps.[49]

Pusher escape motor

Blue Origin partnered with Aerojet Rocketdyne to develop a pusher launch escape system for the New Shepard suborbital Crew Capsule. Aerojet Rocketdyne provides the Crew Capsule Escape Solid Rocket Motor (CCE SRM) while the thrust vector control system that steers the capsule during an abort is designed and manufactured by Blue Origin.[50][51]

In late 2012, Blue Origin performed a pad abort test of the escape system on a full-scale suborbital capsule.[52] Four years later in 2016, the escape system was successfully tested in-flight at the point of highest dynamic pressure as the vehicle reached transonic velocity.[53]

In September 2022, The abort system was triggered for real after the BE-3 engine on the booster failed during the NS-23 mission, leading to a launch abort. The system worked flawlessly.

Facilities

 
Production facilities near the Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Blue Origin has a development facility near Seattle, Washington, a facility in Reston, Virginia and a privately owned spaceport in West Texas. Blue Origin's Reston office hosts the company's “Center of Excellence” in addition to their “Advanced Development Program, New Glenn launch system, new space infrastructure product development, and the company’s Enterprise Technology team”. Blue Origin has continued to expand its Seattle-area office and rocket production facilities in 2016 – purchasing an adjacent 11,000 m2 (120,000 sq ft)-building[54] – and 2017, with permits filed to build a new 21,900 m2 (236,000 sq ft) warehouse complex and an additional 9,560 m2 (102,900 sq ft) of office space.[55] The company's established a new headquarters and R&D facility, dubbed the O’Neill Building, in Kent, Washington, on June 6, 2020.[56][57]

Blue Origin manufactures rocket engines, launch vehicles, and space capsules in Washington. Its largest engine – BE-4 – will be produced at a new manufacturing facility in Huntsville, Alabama, which was first announced in 2017[58] and opened in February 2020.[59] In 2017, Blue Origin established a manufacturing facility for launch vehicles in Florida near where they will launch New Glenn from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, after initiating design and construction in 2015.[60][61][62]

The west Texas suborbital launch site is at 31°25'22.6"N 104°45'25.6"W (31.422949, -104.757120), about 20 miles north of Van Horn, Texas.

At Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, from 2016, Blue Origin have been converting Launch Complex 36 (LC-36) to launch New Glenn to orbit.[63]

Flights

1
2
3
4
5
6
2005
2010
2015
2020
 
Timeline of Space­Ship­One, Space­Ship­Two, CSXT and New Shepard sub-orbital flights. Where booster and capsule achieved different altitudes, the higher is plotted. In the SVG file, hover over a point to show details.
Flight No. Date Vehicle Apogee Outcome Notes
1 March 5, 2005 Charon 315 ft (96 m)[16] Success
2 November 13, 2006 Goddard 279 ft (85 m)[64] Success First rocket-powered test flight[65]
3 March 22, 2007 Goddard ♺[66] Success
4 April 19, 2007 Goddard ♺[67] Success
5 May 6, 2011 PM2 (Propulsion Module)[68] Success [22]
6 August 24, 2011 PM2 (Propulsion Module) ♺ Failure [22]
7 October 19, 2012 New Shepard capsule Success Pad escape test flight[52]
8 April 29, 2015 New Shepard 1 307,000 ft (93.5 km) Partial success Flight to altitude 93.5 km, capsule recovered, booster crashed on landing[69]
9 November 23, 2015 New Shepard 2 329,839 ft (100.535 km)[70] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing[71]
10 January 22, 2016 New Shepard 2 ♺ 333,582 ft (101.676 km)[72] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster[73]
11 April 2, 2016 New Shepard 2 ♺ 339,178 ft (103.381 km)[74] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster[75]
12 June 19, 2016 New Shepard 2 ♺ 331,501 ft (101.042 km)[76] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster: The fourth launch and landing of the same rocket. Blue Origin published a live webcast of the takeoff and landing.[76]
13 October 5, 2016 New Shepard 2 ♺ Booster: 307,458 ft (93.713 km)

Capsule: 23,269 ft (7.092 km)[77]

 Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster. Successful test of the in-flight abort system. The fifth and final launch and landing of the same rocket (NS2).[53]
14 December 12, 2017 New Shepard 3 Booster: 322,032 ft (98.155 km)

Capsule: 322,405 ft (98.269 km)[78]

 Success Flight to just under 100 km and landing. The first launch of NS3 and a new Crew Capsule 2.0.[79]
15 April 29, 2018 New Shepard 3 ♺ 351,000 ft (107 km)[80] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster.[81]
16 July 18, 2018 New Shepard 3 ♺ 389,846 ft (118.825 km)[82] Success Sub-orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster, with the Crew Capsule 2.0–1 RSS H.G.Wells, carrying a mannequin. Successful test of the in-flight abort system at high altitude. Flight duration was 11 minutes.[82]
17 January 23, 2019 New Shepard 3 ♺ Approx. 351,000 ft (106.9 km)[83] Success Sub-orbital flight, delayed from December 18, 2018. Eight NASA research and technology payloads were flown.[84][85]
18 May 2, 2019 New Shepard 3 ♺ Approx. 346,000 ft (105 km)[86] Success Sub-orbital flight. Max Ascent Velocity: 2,217 mph (3,568 km/h),[86] duration: 10 minutes, 10 seconds. Payload: 38 microgravity research payloads (nine sponsored by NASA).
19 December 11, 2019 New Shepard 3 ♺ Approx. 343,000 ft (104.5 km)[87] Success Sub-orbital flight, Payload: Multiple commercial, research (8 sponsored by NASA) and educational payloads, including postcards from Club for the Future.[88][89][87]
20 October 13, 2020 New Shepard 3 ♺ Approx. 346,000 ft (105.4 km) Success 7th flight of the same capsule/booster. Onboard 12 payloads include Space Lab Technologies, Southwest Research Institute, postcards and seeds for Club for the Future, and multiple payloads for NASA including SPLICE to test future lunar landing technologies in support of the Artemis program[90]
21 January 14, 2021 New Shepard 4 350,858 ft (106 km) Success Uncrewed qualification flight for NS4 rocket and "RSS First Step" capsule and maiden flight for NS4.[91]
22 April 14, 2021 New Shepard 4 ♺ 348,753 ft (106 km) Success 2nd flight of NS4 with Astronaut Rehearsal. Gary Lai, Susan Knapp, Clay Mowry, and Audrey Powers, all Blue Origin personnel, are "stand-in astronauts". Lai and Powers briefly get in.[92]
23 July 20, 2021 New Shepard 4 ♺ 351,210 ft (107 km) Success First crewed flight (NS-16). Crew: Jeff Bezos, Mark Bezos, Wally Funk, and Oliver Daemen.[93]
24 August 26, 2021[94] New Shepard 3 ♺ 347,434 ft (106 km) Success Payload mission consisting of 18 commercial payloads inside the crew capsule, a NASA lunar landing technology demonstration installed on the exterior of the booster and an art installation installed on the exterior of the crew capsule.[95]
25 October 13, 2021 New Shepard 4 ♺ 341,434 ft (106 km) Success Second crewed flight (NS-18). Crew: Audrey Powers, Chris Boshuizen, Glen de Vries, and William Shatner.[96]
26 December 11, 2021 New Shepard 4 ♺ Success Third crewed flight (NS-19). Crew: Laura Shepard Churchley, Michael Strahan, Dylan Taylor, Evan Dick, Lane Bess, and Cameron Bess.[97]
27 March 31, 2022 New Shepard 4 ♺ 107 km (66 mi) Success Fourth crewed flight (NS-20). Crew: Marty Allen, Sharon Hagle, Marc Hagle, Jim Kitchen, George Nield, and Gary Lai.[98]
28 June 4, 2022 New Shepard 4 ♺ 107 km (66 mi) Success Fifth crewed flight (NS-21). Crew: Evan Dick, Katya Echazarreta, Hamish Harding, Victor Correa Hespanha, Jaison Robinson, and Victor Vescovo.[99]
29 August 4, 2022 New Shepard 4 ♺ 107 km (66 mi) Success Sixth crewed flight (NS-22). Crew: Coby Cotton, Mário Ferreira, Vanessa O'Brien, Clint Kelly III, Sara Sabry, and Steve Young.[100]
30 September 12, 2022 New Shepard 3 ♺ Failure Uncrewed flight with commercial payloads onboard (NS-23). A booster failure triggered the launch escape system during flight, and the capsule landed successfully.

Funding

By July 2014, Jeff Bezos had invested over US$500 million into Blue Origin.[101] and the vast majority of further funding into 2016 was to support technology development and operations at Blue Origin came from Jeff Bezos' private investment, but Bezos declined to publicly state the amount[61] prior to April 2017 when an annual amount was published showing that Bezos was selling approximately US$1 billion in Amazon stock each year for investment in Blue Origin.[102] Bezos received criticism for spending so much of his vast wealth to fund Blue Origin and his personal flight into space instead of addressing the needs of people on Earth. Bezos said his critics were "largely right" and: "We have lots of problems here and now on Earth and we need to work on those. And we always need to look to the future. We've always done that as a species, as a civilization. We have to do both."[103]

As of October 2018,[104] Blue Origin received at least $181 million from the United States Air Force for launch vehicle development. Blue Origin also completed work for NASA on several small development contracts, receiving total funding of US$25.7 million by 2013.[105][106] Blue Origins was also eligible to benefit from further grants raising this to US$500 million as part of the Launch Services Agreement competition,[107] However, after the company failed to secure a National Security Space Launch procurement contract, on December 31, 2020, the U.S. Space Force officially terminated launch technology partnerships with Blue Origin.[108]

Collaborations

With NASA

Blue Origin has contracted to do work for NASA on several development efforts. The company was awarded US$3.7 million in funding in 2009 by NASA via a Space Act Agreement[105][109] under the first Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) program for development of concepts and technologies to support future human spaceflight operations.[110][111] NASA co-funded risk-mitigation activities related to ground testing of (1) an innovative 'pusher' escape system, that lowers cost by being reusable and enhances safety by avoiding the jettison event of a traditional 'tractor' Launch Escape System, and (2) an innovative composite pressure vessel cabin that both reduces weight and increases safety of astronauts.[105] This was later revealed to be a part of a larger system, designed for a biconic capsule, that would be launched atop an Atlas V rocket.[112] On November 8, 2010, it was announced that Blue Origin had completed all milestones under its CCDev Space Act Agreement.[113]

In April 2011, Blue Origin received a commitment from NASA for US$22 million of funding under the CCDev phase 2 program.[106] Milestones included (1) performing a Mission Concept Review (MCR) and System Requirements Review (SRR) on the orbital Space Vehicle, which utilizes a biconic shape to optimize its launch profile and atmospheric reentry, (2) further maturing the pusher escape system, including ground and flight tests, and (3) accelerating development of its BE-3 LOX/LH2 440 kN (100,000 lbf) engine through full-scale thrust chamber testing.[114]

In 2012, NASA's Commercial Crew Program released its follow-on CCiCap solicitation for the development of crew delivery to ISS by 2017. Blue Origin did not submit a proposal for CCiCap, but is reportedly continuing work on its development program with private funding.[115] Blue Origin had a failed attempt to lease a different part of the Space Coast, when they submitted a bid in 2013 to lease Launch Complex 39A (LC39A) at the Kennedy Space Center – on land to the north of, and adjacent to, Cape Canaveral AFS – following NASA's decision to lease the unused complex out as part of a bid to reduce annual operation and maintenance costs. The Blue Origin bid was for shared and non-exclusive use of the LC39A complex such that the launchpad was to have been able to interface with multiple vehicles, and costs for using the launch pad were to have been shared across multiple companies over the term of the lease. One potential shared user in the Blue Origin notional plan was United Launch Alliance. Commercial use of the LC39A launch complex was awarded to SpaceX, which submitted a bid for exclusive use of the launch complex to support their crewed missions.[116]

In September 2013 – before completion of the bid period, and before any public announcement by NASA of the results of the process – Florida Today reported that Blue Origin had filed a protest with the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) "over what it says is a plan by NASA to award an exclusive commercial lease to SpaceX for use of mothballed space shuttle launch pad 39A".[117] NASA had originally planned to complete the bid award and have the pad transferred by October 1, 2013, but the protest delayed a decision until the GAO reached a decision on the protest.[117][118] SpaceX said that they would be willing to support a multi-user arrangement for pad 39A.[119] In December 2013, the GAO denied the Blue Origin protest and sided with NASA, which argued that the solicitation contained no preference on the use of the facility as either multi-use or single-use. "The [solicitation] document merely [asked] bidders to explain their reasons for selecting one approach instead of the other and how they would manage the facility".[118] NASA selected the SpaceX proposal in late 2013 and signed a 20-year lease contract for Launch Pad 39A to SpaceX in April 2014.[120]

On April 30, 2020, Blue Origin's National Team, which includes Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Draper, was awarded $579 million to develop an integrated human landing system as part of NASA's Artemis program to return humans to the Moon.[121][122] On April 16, 2021, NASA awarded the Artemis moon lander work, in full, to the rival SpaceX bid.[123] On April 26, 2021, Blue Origin filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office, citing NASA's failure "... to allow offerors to meaningfully compete for an award when the Agency's requirements changed due to its undisclosed, perceived shortfall of funding ...", as well as the Agency's performance of a "... flawed competitive acquisition in contravention of BAA rules and requirements".[124][125] On July 30, 2021, the GAO denied Blue Origin's protest.[126]

With ULA

In September 2018, it was announced that Blue Origin's BE-4 engine had been selected by United Launch Alliance to provide first-stage rocket engines for ULA's next-generation booster design, the Vulcan rocket. The BE-4 engine is set to replace the Russian-built RD-180 currently powering ULA's Atlas V.[127]

With military agencies

Blue Origin cooperated[clarification needed] with Boeing in Phase 1 of the DARPA XS-1 spaceplane program.[128] Blue Origin was reportedly in contracting talks with the United States Space Force as well according to Lt. General David Thompson.[129] However, such talks ceased as of December 31, 2020.

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March 08, 2023
blue, origin, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, article, contains, content, that, written, like, advertisement, please, help, improve, removing, pro. This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article contains content that is written like an advertisement Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view March 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia s content policies particularly neutral point of view Please discuss further on the talk page March 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message Learn how and when to remove this template message Blue Origin LLC is an privately funded American aerospace manufacturer and sub orbital spaceflight services company headquartered in Kent Washington 3 The company produces Rocket Engines Rockets and other components Blue Origin LLCFeather logoTypeLimited liability companyIndustryAerospace and DefenseFoundedSeptember 8 2000 22 years ago September 8 2000 FounderJeff BezosHeadquartersKent Washington U S Key peopleBob Smith CEO 1 OwnerJeff BezosNumber of employees gt 6 000 2 2022 WebsiteBlueOrigin comAlthough headquartered in Kent Washington the company also operates a 600 000sqft factory with over 1 000 employees in Huntsville Alabama where it creates many of its products The company operates its Orbital Launch Site OLS from Merritt Island Florida and the Space Coast also in Florida USA The company has Launch capabilities 30 1 miles North of Van Horn Texas at Launch Site One and at the Orbital Launch Site OLS at the Space Coast Station in Florida Contents 1 History 2 Launch vehicles 2 1 New Shepard 2 2 New Glenn 3 Early test vehicles 3 1 Charon 3 2 Goddard 3 3 PM2 4 Orbital Subsystems and Earlier Development Work 5 Other projects 5 1 New Armstrong 5 2 Blue Moon 5 3 Orbital Reef 6 Rocket engines 6 1 BE 1 6 2 BE 2 6 3 BE 3 6 3 1 BE 3U 6 4 BE 4 6 5 BE 7 6 6 Pusher escape motor 7 Facilities 8 Flights 9 Funding 10 Collaborations 10 1 With NASA 10 2 With ULA 10 3 With military agencies 11 References 12 External linksHistory Edit Blue Origin s Coat of Arms Blue Origin was founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos the founder and executive chairman of Amazon The company states that it aims to make access to space cheaper and more reliable through reusable launch vehicles 4 5 The company primarily employs an incremental approach from suborbital to orbital flight 3 with each developmental step building on its prior work Blue Origin moved into the orbital spaceflight technology development business in 2014 initially as a rocket engine supplier for others via a contractual agreement to build a new large rocket engine the BE 4 for major US launch system operator United Launch Alliance ULA Blue Origin said the BE 4 would be ready for flight by 2017 6 By 2015 Blue Origin had announced plans to also manufacture and fly its orbital launch vehicle known as the New Glenn from the Florida Space Coast BE 4 had been expected to complete engine qualification testing by late 2018 7 On July 20 2021 the company successfully completed its first crewed mission Blue Origin NS 16 into space using its New Shepard launch vehicle The flight was approximately 10 minutes and crossed the Karman line New Shepard performed six crewed flights between July 2021 and August 2022 taking a mix of sponsored celebrities such as Wally Funk and William Shatner and paying customers New Shepard ticket sales brought in 50 million through to June 2022 8 On September 2022 an uncrewed mission of the New Shepard failed due to the failure of the BE 3 main engine The launch escape system triggered and the capsule landed safely The remaining New Shepard vehicles were grounded pending an FAA investigation into the incident 9 Launch vehicles EditNew Shepard Edit New Shepard launch on April 29 2015 Blue Origin s uses suborbital spaceflight and makes money from Tourism launches from Launch Site One New Shepard is composed of two vehicles a crew capsule and a rocket booster with 1 BE 3 engine New Shepard lifts off and after gaining enough speed and attitude to pass the Karman line the booster along with the rocket separate during flight After separation the booster is designed to return to Earth to perform a vertical landing while the crew capsule follows a separate trajectory passes the Karman line and then returns to Earth and parachutes are used for a soft landing The Booster lands first followed by the crew capsule less than 5 minutes later The landing occurs approximately 50 feet from the booster New Shepard is also intended to provide frequent opportunities for researchers to fly experiments into suborbital space 10 New Shepard landing with parachutes on April 29 2015 On July 20 2021 the New Shepard performed its first crewed mission into space The flight was approximately 10 minutes and crossed the Karman lineThe passengers were Jeff Bezos his brother Mark Bezos Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen after the unnamed auction winner later revealed to have been Justin Sun 11 dropped out due to a scheduling conflict The second and third crewed missions of New Shepard took place in October and December 2021 respectively Fourth crewed flight happened in March 2022 12 On June 4 2022 New Shepard completed its fifth crewed mission launch after the delayed voyage previous month 13 The sixth crewed flight took place on August 4 2022 New Glenn Edit The New Glenn is an upcoming Rocket from Blue Origin that is a two stage orbital launch vehicle that is expected to launch sometime in 2024 The design work on the vehicle began in 2012 The high level specifications for the vehicle were publicly announced in September 2016 14 The first stage will be powered by seven BE 4 engines also designed and manufactured by Blue Origin The first stage is reusable just like the New Shepard suborbital launch vehicle that preceded it The second stage is intended to be expendable 14 Blue Origin intends to launch the rocket from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 36 The New Glenn Rocket will stand 300 Feet tall when Vertical and will have the most cargo capacity of any other Rocket in the world The Rocket has extremely high availably launch capabilities The 7 meter fairing has two times the payload volume of any existing launch vehicle which means more room for satellites and the freedom to build in more capacity New Glenn is also able to launch and land in 95 of weather conditions making it a reliable option for payload customers Early test vehicles EditCharon Edit Charon on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle Washington Blue Origin s first flight test vehicle called Charon after Pluto s moon 15 was powered by four vertically mounted Rolls Royce Viper Mk 301 jet engines rather than rockets The low altitude vehicle was developed to test autonomous guidance and control technologies and the processes that the company would use to develop its later rockets Charon made its only test flight at Moses Lake Washington on March 5 2005 It flew to an altitude of 96 m 316 ft before returning for a controlled landing near the liftoff point 16 17 As of 2016 Charon is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle Washington 18 Goddard Edit The next test vehicle named Goddard also known as PM1 first flew on November 13 2006 The flight was successful A test flight for December 2 never launched 19 20 According to Federal Aviation Administration records two further flights were performed by Goddard 21 PM2 Edit Another early suborbital test vehicle PM2 had two flight tests in 2011 in west Texas The vehicle designation may be short for Propulsion Module 22 The first flight was a short hop low altitude VTVL takeoff and landing mission flown on May 6 2011 The second flight August 24 2011 failed when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle Blue Origin released its analysis of the failure nine days later As the vehicle reached a speed of Mach 1 2 and 14 km 46 000 ft altitude a flight instability drove an angle of attack that triggered the range safety system to terminate thrust on the vehicle 23 Orbital Subsystems and Earlier Development Work EditBlue Origin began developing systems for orbital human spacecraft prior to 2012 A reusable first stage booster was projected to fly a suborbital trajectory taking off vertically like the booster stage of a conventional multistage rocket Following stage separation the upper stage would continue to propel astronauts to orbit while the first stage booster would descend to perform a powered vertical landing similar to the New Shepard suborbital Propulsion Module The first stage booster would be refueled and launched again allowing improved reliability and lowering the cost of human access to space 24 The booster rocket was projected to loft Blue Origin s biconic Space Vehicle to orbit carrying astronauts and supplies After orbiting the Earth the Space Vehicle will reenter Earth s atmosphere to land on land under parachutes and then be reused on future missions to Earth orbit 24 Blue Origin successfully completed a System Requirements Review SRR of its orbital Space Vehicle in May 2012 25 Engine testing for the Reusable Booster System RBS vehicle began in 2012 A full power test of the thrust chamber for Blue Origin BE 3 liquid oxygen liquid hydrogen rocket engine was conducted at a NASA test facility in October 2012 The chamber successfully achieved full thrust of 100 000 pounds force about 440 kN 26 Other projects EditNew Armstrong Edit At the time of the announcement of New Glenn in 2016 Jeff Bezos revealed that the next project after New Glenn would be called New Armstrong without detailing what that would be Media have speculated that New Armstrong would be a launch vehicle named after Neil Armstrong the first man to walk on the Moon 27 28 Blue Moon Edit The Blue Moon lander is a crew carrying lunar lander unveiled in 2019 29 The standard version of the lander is intended to transport 3 6 t 7 900 lb to the lunar surface whereas a stretched tank variant could land up to 6 5 t 14 000 lb on the Moon both making a soft landing The lander will use the BE 7 hydrolox engine 30 Orbital Reef Edit On October 25 2021 Blue Origin announced that together with Sierra Space it would build a Mixed use space business park in LEO called Orbital Reef to open multiple new markets in space and provide anyone with the opportunity to establish their own address on orbit It will offer research industrial international and commercial customers the cost competitive end to end services they need including space transportation and logistics space habitation equipment accommodation and operations including onboard crew The station will start operating in the second half of this decade 31 Further partners are Boeing Redwire Space Genesis Engineering Solutions and Arizona State University 32 Rocket engines EditFollowing Aerojet s acquisition of Pratt amp Whitney Rocketdyne in 2012 Blue Origin president Rob Meyerson saw an opportunity to fill a gap in the defense industrial base Blue Origin publicly entered the liquid rocket engine business by partnering with ULA on the development of the BE 4 and working with other companies Meyerson announced the selection of Huntsville Alabama as the location of Blue Origin s rocket production factory in June 2017 33 34 BE 1 Edit Blue Engine 1 or BE 1 was the first rocket engine developed by Blue Origin and was used on the company s Goddard development vehicle The pressure fed monopropellant engine was powered by peroxide and produced 9 8 kN 2 200 lbf of thrust 35 36 BE 2 Edit Blue Engine 2 or BE 2 was a pump fed bipropellant engine burning kerosene and peroxide which produced 140 kN 31 000 lbf of thrust 35 36 Five BE 2 engines powered Blue Origin s PM 2 development vehicle on two test flights in 2011 37 BE 3 Edit Main article BE 3 Blue Origin publicly announced the development of the Blue Engine 3 or BE 3 in January 2013 but the engine had begun development in the early 2010s BE 3 is a new liquid hydrogen liquid oxygen LH2 LOX cryogenic engine that can produce 490 kN 110 000 lbf of thrust at full power and can be throttled down to as low as 110 kN 25 000 lbf for use in controlled vertical landings 38 Early thrust chamber testing began at NASA Stennis 39 in 2013 40 By late 2013 the BE 3 had been successfully tested on a full duration suborbital burn with simulated coast phases and engine relights demonstrating deep throttle full power long duration and reliable restart all in a single test sequence 38 NASA has released a video of the test 40 As of December 2013 update the engine had demonstrated more than 160 starts and 9 100 seconds 2 5 h of operation at Blue Origin s test facility near Van Horn Texas 38 41 BE 3 engine acceptance testing was completed by April 2015 with 450 test firings of the engine and a cumulative run time of more than 30 000 seconds 8 3 h The BE 3 engine powers the New Shepard space capsule that is being used for Blue Origin suborbital flights that began in 2015 42 BE 3U Edit The BE 3U engine is a modified BE 3 for use on upper stages of Blue Origin orbital launch vehicles The engine will include a nozzle better optimized for operation under vacuum conditions as well as a number of other manufacturing differences since it is an expendable engine whereas the BE 3 is designed for reusability 43 BE 4 Edit BE 4 rocket engine on display at the 34th Space Symposium April 2018 It was the first BE 4 to be hotfire tested on October 18 2017 Blue Origin began work on a new and much larger rocket engine in 2011 The new engine the Blue Engine 4 or BE 4 that will combust liquid oxygen and liquid methane propellants The engine has been designed to produce 2 400 kN 550 000 lbf of thrust In late 2014 Blue Origin signed an agreement with United Launch Alliance ULA to co develop the BE 4 engine and to commit to use the new engine on an upgraded Atlas V launch vehicle replacing the single RD 180 Russian made engine The new launch vehicle will use two of the 2 400 kN 550 000 lbf BE 4 engines on each first stage The engine development program began in 2011 44 45 On October 31 2022 a Twitter post by the official Blue Origin account announced that the first two BE 4 engines had been delivered to ULA and were in the process of being integrated on a Vulcan rocket In a later tweet ULA CEO Tory Bruno said that one of the engines had already been installed on the booster and that the other would be joining it momentarily 46 BE 7 Edit The BE 7 engine currently under development is being designed for use on a lunar lander 47 Its first ignition tests 48 were performed June 2019 The BE 7 is designed to produce 40 kN 10 000 lbf of thrust and have a deep throttle range making it less powerful than the other engines Blue Origin has in development production but this low thrust is advantageous for its intended purpose as a Lunar vehicle descent stage main propulsion system as it offers greater control for soft landings The engine uses hydrogen and oxygen propellants in a dual expander combustion cycle similar to the more typical expander cycle used by the RL 10 and others which in theory offers better performance and allows each pump to run at independent flow rates Blue Origin plans to use additive manufacturing technology to produce the combustion chamber of the engine which would allow them to more cheaply construct the complex cooling channels required to keep the engine from melting and to produce the hot gasses that will power the pumps 49 Pusher escape motor Edit Blue Origin partnered with Aerojet Rocketdyne to develop a pusher launch escape system for the New Shepard suborbital Crew Capsule Aerojet Rocketdyne provides the Crew Capsule Escape Solid Rocket Motor CCE SRM while the thrust vector control system that steers the capsule during an abort is designed and manufactured by Blue Origin 50 51 In late 2012 Blue Origin performed a pad abort test of the escape system on a full scale suborbital capsule 52 Four years later in 2016 the escape system was successfully tested in flight at the point of highest dynamic pressure as the vehicle reached transonic velocity 53 In September 2022 The abort system was triggered for real after the BE 3 engine on the booster failed during the NS 23 mission leading to a launch abort The system worked flawlessly Facilities Edit Production facilities near the Kennedy Space Center Florida Blue Origin has a development facility near Seattle Washington a facility in Reston Virginia and a privately owned spaceport in West Texas Blue Origin s Reston office hosts the company s Center of Excellence in addition to their Advanced Development Program New Glenn launch system new space infrastructure product development and the company s Enterprise Technology team Blue Origin has continued to expand its Seattle area office and rocket production facilities in 2016 purchasing an adjacent 11 000 m2 120 000 sq ft building 54 and 2017 with permits filed to build a new 21 900 m2 236 000 sq ft warehouse complex and an additional 9 560 m2 102 900 sq ft of office space 55 The company s established a new headquarters and R amp D facility dubbed the O Neill Building in Kent Washington on June 6 2020 56 57 Blue Origin manufactures rocket engines launch vehicles and space capsules in Washington Its largest engine BE 4 will be produced at a new manufacturing facility in Huntsville Alabama which was first announced in 2017 58 and opened in February 2020 59 In 2017 Blue Origin established a manufacturing facility for launch vehicles in Florida near where they will launch New Glenn from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after initiating design and construction in 2015 60 61 62 The west Texas suborbital launch site is at 31 25 22 6 N 104 45 25 6 W 31 422949 104 757120 about 20 miles north of Van Horn Texas At Cape Canaveral Space Force Station from 2016 Blue Origin have been converting Launch Complex 36 LC 36 to launch New Glenn to orbit 63 Flights Edit1 2 3 4 5 6 2005 2010 2015 2020 Charon Goddard PM2 New Shepard Timeline of Space Ship One Space Ship Two CSXT and New Shepard sub orbital flights Where booster and capsule achieved different altitudes the higher is plotted In the SVG file hover over a point to show details Flight No Date Vehicle Apogee Outcome Notes1 March 5 2005 Charon 315 ft 96 m 16 Success2 November 13 2006 Goddard 279 ft 85 m 64 Success First rocket powered test flight 65 3 March 22 2007 Goddard 66 Success4 April 19 2007 Goddard 67 Success5 May 6 2011 PM2 Propulsion Module 68 Success 22 6 August 24 2011 PM2 Propulsion Module Failure 22 7 October 19 2012 New Shepard capsule Success Pad escape test flight 52 8 April 29 2015 New Shepard 1 307 000 ft 93 5 km Partial success Flight to altitude 93 5 km capsule recovered booster crashed on landing 69 9 November 23 2015 New Shepard 2 329 839 ft 100 535 km 70 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing 71 10 January 22 2016 New Shepard 2 333 582 ft 101 676 km 72 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster 73 11 April 2 2016 New Shepard 2 339 178 ft 103 381 km 74 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster 75 12 June 19 2016 New Shepard 2 331 501 ft 101 042 km 76 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster The fourth launch and landing of the same rocket Blue Origin published a live webcast of the takeoff and landing 76 13 October 5 2016 New Shepard 2 Booster 307 458 ft 93 713 km Capsule 23 269 ft 7 092 km 77 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster Successful test of the in flight abort system The fifth and final launch and landing of the same rocket NS2 53 14 December 12 2017 New Shepard 3 Booster 322 032 ft 98 155 km Capsule 322 405 ft 98 269 km 78 Success Flight to just under 100 km and landing The first launch of NS3 and a new Crew Capsule 2 0 79 15 April 29 2018 New Shepard 3 351 000 ft 107 km 80 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster 81 16 July 18 2018 New Shepard 3 389 846 ft 118 825 km 82 Success Sub orbital spaceflight and landing of a reused booster with the Crew Capsule 2 0 1 RSS H G Wells carrying a mannequin Successful test of the in flight abort system at high altitude Flight duration was 11 minutes 82 17 January 23 2019 New Shepard 3 Approx 351 000 ft 106 9 km 83 Success Sub orbital flight delayed from December 18 2018 Eight NASA research and technology payloads were flown 84 85 18 May 2 2019 New Shepard 3 Approx 346 000 ft 105 km 86 Success Sub orbital flight Max Ascent Velocity 2 217 mph 3 568 km h 86 duration 10 minutes 10 seconds Payload 38 microgravity research payloads nine sponsored by NASA 19 December 11 2019 New Shepard 3 Approx 343 000 ft 104 5 km 87 Success Sub orbital flight Payload Multiple commercial research 8 sponsored by NASA and educational payloads including postcards from Club for the Future 88 89 87 20 October 13 2020 New Shepard 3 Approx 346 000 ft 105 4 km Success 7th flight of the same capsule booster Onboard 12 payloads include Space Lab Technologies Southwest Research Institute postcards and seeds for Club for the Future and multiple payloads for NASA including SPLICE to test future lunar landing technologies in support of the Artemis program 90 21 January 14 2021 New Shepard 4 350 858 ft 106 km Success Uncrewed qualification flight for NS4 rocket and RSS First Step capsule and maiden flight for NS4 91 22 April 14 2021 New Shepard 4 348 753 ft 106 km Success 2nd flight of NS4 with Astronaut Rehearsal Gary Lai Susan Knapp Clay Mowry and Audrey Powers all Blue Origin personnel are stand in astronauts Lai and Powers briefly get in 92 23 July 20 2021 New Shepard 4 351 210 ft 107 km Success First crewed flight NS 16 Crew Jeff Bezos Mark Bezos Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen 93 24 August 26 2021 94 New Shepard 3 347 434 ft 106 km Success Payload mission consisting of 18 commercial payloads inside the crew capsule a NASA lunar landing technology demonstration installed on the exterior of the booster and an art installation installed on the exterior of the crew capsule 95 25 October 13 2021 New Shepard 4 341 434 ft 106 km Success Second crewed flight NS 18 Crew Audrey Powers Chris Boshuizen Glen de Vries and William Shatner 96 26 December 11 2021 New Shepard 4 Success Third crewed flight NS 19 Crew Laura Shepard Churchley Michael Strahan Dylan Taylor Evan Dick Lane Bess and Cameron Bess 97 27 March 31 2022 New Shepard 4 107 km 66 mi Success Fourth crewed flight NS 20 Crew Marty Allen Sharon Hagle Marc Hagle Jim Kitchen George Nield and Gary Lai 98 28 June 4 2022 New Shepard 4 107 km 66 mi Success Fifth crewed flight NS 21 Crew Evan Dick Katya Echazarreta Hamish Harding Victor Correa Hespanha Jaison Robinson and Victor Vescovo 99 29 August 4 2022 New Shepard 4 107 km 66 mi Success Sixth crewed flight NS 22 Crew Coby Cotton Mario Ferreira Vanessa O Brien Clint Kelly III Sara Sabry and Steve Young 100 30 September 12 2022 New Shepard 3 Failure Uncrewed flight with commercial payloads onboard NS 23 A booster failure triggered the launch escape system during flight and the capsule landed successfully Funding EditBy July 2014 Jeff Bezos had invested over US 500 million into Blue Origin 101 and the vast majority of further funding into 2016 was to support technology development and operations at Blue Origin came from Jeff Bezos private investment but Bezos declined to publicly state the amount 61 prior to April 2017 when an annual amount was published showing that Bezos was selling approximately US 1 billion in Amazon stock each year for investment in Blue Origin 102 Bezos received criticism for spending so much of his vast wealth to fund Blue Origin and his personal flight into space instead of addressing the needs of people on Earth Bezos said his critics were largely right and We have lots of problems here and now on Earth and we need to work on those And we always need to look to the future We ve always done that as a species as a civilization We have to do both 103 As of October 2018 104 Blue Origin received at least 181 million from the United States Air Force for launch vehicle development Blue Origin also completed work for NASA on several small development contracts receiving total funding of US 25 7 million by 2013 105 106 Blue Origins was also eligible to benefit from further grants raising this to US 500 million as part of the Launch Services Agreement competition 107 However after the company failed to secure a National Security Space Launch procurement contract on December 31 2020 the U S Space Force officially terminated launch technology partnerships with Blue Origin 108 Collaborations EditWith NASA Edit Blue Origin has contracted to do work for NASA on several development efforts The company was awarded US 3 7 million in funding in 2009 by NASA via a Space Act Agreement 105 109 under the first Commercial Crew Development CCDev program for development of concepts and technologies to support future human spaceflight operations 110 111 NASA co funded risk mitigation activities related to ground testing of 1 an innovative pusher escape system that lowers cost by being reusable and enhances safety by avoiding the jettison event of a traditional tractor Launch Escape System and 2 an innovative composite pressure vessel cabin that both reduces weight and increases safety of astronauts 105 This was later revealed to be a part of a larger system designed for a biconic capsule that would be launched atop an Atlas V rocket 112 On November 8 2010 it was announced that Blue Origin had completed all milestones under its CCDev Space Act Agreement 113 In April 2011 Blue Origin received a commitment from NASA for US 22 million of funding under the CCDev phase 2 program 106 Milestones included 1 performing a Mission Concept Review MCR and System Requirements Review SRR on the orbital Space Vehicle which utilizes a biconic shape to optimize its launch profile and atmospheric reentry 2 further maturing the pusher escape system including ground and flight tests and 3 accelerating development of its BE 3 LOX LH2 440 kN 100 000 lbf engine through full scale thrust chamber testing 114 In 2012 NASA s Commercial Crew Program released its follow on CCiCap solicitation for the development of crew delivery to ISS by 2017 Blue Origin did not submit a proposal for CCiCap but is reportedly continuing work on its development program with private funding 115 Blue Origin had a failed attempt to lease a different part of the Space Coast when they submitted a bid in 2013 to lease Launch Complex 39A LC39A at the Kennedy Space Center on land to the north of and adjacent to Cape Canaveral AFS following NASA s decision to lease the unused complex out as part of a bid to reduce annual operation and maintenance costs The Blue Origin bid was for shared and non exclusive use of the LC39A complex such that the launchpad was to have been able to interface with multiple vehicles and costs for using the launch pad were to have been shared across multiple companies over the term of the lease One potential shared user in the Blue Origin notional plan was United Launch Alliance Commercial use of the LC39A launch complex was awarded to SpaceX which submitted a bid for exclusive use of the launch complex to support their crewed missions 116 In September 2013 before completion of the bid period and before any public announcement by NASA of the results of the process Florida Today reported that Blue Origin had filed a protest with the U S General Accounting Office GAO over what it says is a plan by NASA to award an exclusive commercial lease to SpaceX for use of mothballed space shuttle launch pad 39A 117 NASA had originally planned to complete the bid award and have the pad transferred by October 1 2013 but the protest delayed a decision until the GAO reached a decision on the protest 117 118 SpaceX said that they would be willing to support a multi user arrangement for pad 39A 119 In December 2013 the GAO denied the Blue Origin protest and sided with NASA which argued that the solicitation contained no preference on the use of the facility as either multi use or single use The solicitation document merely asked bidders to explain their reasons for selecting one approach instead of the other and how they would manage the facility 118 NASA selected the SpaceX proposal in late 2013 and signed a 20 year lease contract for Launch Pad 39A to SpaceX in April 2014 120 On April 30 2020 Blue Origin s National Team which includes Lockheed Martin Northrop Grumman and Draper was awarded 579 million to develop an integrated human landing system as part of NASA s Artemis program to return humans to the Moon 121 122 On April 16 2021 NASA awarded the Artemis moon lander work in full to the rival SpaceX bid 123 On April 26 2021 Blue Origin filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office citing NASA s failure to allow offerors to meaningfully compete for an award when the Agency s requirements changed due to its undisclosed perceived shortfall of funding as well as the Agency s performance of a flawed competitive acquisition in contravention of BAA rules and requirements 124 125 On July 30 2021 the GAO denied Blue Origin s protest 126 With ULA Edit In September 2018 it was announced that Blue Origin s BE 4 engine had been selected by United Launch Alliance to provide first stage rocket engines for ULA s next generation booster design the Vulcan rocket The BE 4 engine is set to replace the Russian built RD 180 currently powering ULA s Atlas V 127 With military agencies Edit Blue Origin cooperated clarification needed with Boeing in Phase 1 of the DARPA XS 1 spaceplane program 128 Blue Origin was reportedly in contracting talks with the United States Space Force as well according to Lt General David Thompson 129 However such talks ceased as of December 31 2020 References Edit Sheetz Michael April 18 2018 Blue Origin s new rocket engine will be able to launch 100 full missions CEO says Cnbc com Archived from the original on May 27 2019 Retrieved October 9 2018 Blitz Matt July 8 2022 Jeff Bezos space flight company Blue Origin has its Reston landing spot FFXnow a b Blue Origin NS 21 Mission Nears Launch Aero News Network June 3 2022 Retrieved December 15 2022 Staff Reporter January 24 2019 Kent s Blue Origin racks up another successful New Shepard launch into space Kent Reporter Retrieved October 3 2020 Berger Eric April 2 2016 Why Blue Origin s latest launch is a huge deal for cheap space access Ars Technica Retrieved October 3 2020 Berger Eric August 5 2021 Blue Origin s powerful BE 4 engine is more than four years late here s why Ars Technica Retrieved August 6 2021 Foust Jeff April 19 2018 Blue Origin expects BE 4 qualification tests to be done by year s end SpaceNews Retrieved April 21 2018 What You Pay for Blue Origin s Spaceflight Depends on Who You Are The New York Observer June 23 2022 Tan Huileng An uncrewed rocket from Jeff Bezos Blue Origin failed just over a minute after launch Business Insider Archived from the original on September 13 2022 Retrieved September 13 2022 Blue Origin Research Archived from the original on April 13 2013 Retrieved April 5 2013 Crypto entrepreneur to go to space on New Shepard SpaceNews December 23 2021 Blue Origin s 20th Mission to Space Blue Origin Retrieved June 5 2022 Johnson Katanga June 5 2022 Bezos Blue Origin completes fifth crewed flight launch Reuters Retrieved June 5 2022 a b Bergin Chris September 12 2016 Blue Origin introduce the New Glenn orbital LV NASASpaceFlight com Archived from the original on September 13 2016 Retrieved September 12 2016 Boyle Alan Amazon com billionaire s 5 ton flying jetpack lands in Seattle museum NBC News Archived from the original on February 3 2017 Retrieved February 2 2017 a b Blue Origin Charon Test Vehicle The Museum of Flight Archived from the original on March 24 2013 Retrieved March 4 2013 Blue Origin s Original Charon Flying Vehicle Goes on Display at The Museum of Flight The Museum of Flight Archived from the original on March 28 2013 Retrieved March 4 2013 Blue Origin Charon Test Vehicle Museum of Flight Archived from the original on March 24 2013 Retrieved August 6 2016 Alan Boyle November 28 2006 Blue Origin Rocket Report cosmiclog msnbc msn com Archived from the original on April 15 2008 Retrieved May 28 2008 Alan Boyle December 2 2006 Blue Alert For Blastoff cosmiclog msnbc msn com Archived from the original on May 7 2008 Retrieved May 28 2008 Launches www faa gov Archived from the original on April 21 2019 Retrieved April 4 2019 a b c Blue Origin has a bad day and so do some of the media Archived from the original on January 26 2012 Retrieved September 3 2011 Blue Origin Acknowledges Test Flight Failure Space News September 12 2011 Retrieved November 3 2022 a b Blue Origin About Blue Archived from the original on March 25 2013 Retrieved April 5 2013 Blue Origin Completes Spacecraft System Requirements Review Archived from the original on May 27 2013 Retrieved April 5 2013 Blue Origin tests 100k lb LOX LH2 engine in commercial crew program NewSpace Watch October 16 2012 Retrieved October 17 2012 Samantha Masunaga September 12 2016 Blue Origin s new more powerful rocket will compete with SpaceX Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on September 17 2016 Retrieved September 16 2016 Blue Origin releases details of its monster orbital rocket March 7 2017 Archived from the original on August 23 2019 Retrieved August 24 2019 Sheetz Michael May 9 2019 Jeff Bezos unveils Blue Origin s Blue Moon lunar lander for astronauts CNBC Archived from the original on May 10 2019 Retrieved May 10 2019 Clark Stephen May 9 2019 Jeff Bezos unveils Blue Moon lander Spaceflight Now Archived from the original on May 10 2019 Retrieved May 11 2019 Blue Origin and Sierra Space developing commercial space station Blue Origin News Retrieved February 24 2022 Orbital Reef Orbital Reef BLUE ORIGIN OPENS UP bt e ditionsbyfry com Retrieved May 6 2021 Berger Eric June 28 2017 Why is Jeff Bezos building rocket engines in Alabama He s playing to win Ars Technica Retrieved May 6 2021 a b Blue Origin Engines Blue Origin Archived from the original on June 12 2018 Retrieved May 15 2018 a b jeff foust March 10 2018 Rob Meyerson shows this chart of the various engines Blue Origin has developed and the vehicle that have used or will use them spaceexploration Tweet via Twitter Krebs Gunter April 29 2018 New Shepard Gunter s Space Page Archived from the original on May 16 2018 Retrieved May 15 2018 a b c Messier Doug December 3 2013 Blue Origin Tests New Engine in Simulated Suborbital Mission Profile Parabolic Arc Archived from the original on December 6 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 Updates on commercial crew development NewSpace Journal January 17 2013 Archived from the original on January 19 2013 Retrieved January 21 2013 a b Messier Doug December 3 2013 Video of Blue Origin Engine Test Parabolic Arc Archived from the original on December 6 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 Blue Origin Tests New Engine Archived January 8 2016 at the Wayback Machine Aviation Week 2013 12 09 accessed September 16 2014 Foust Jeff April 13 2015 Blue Origin s suborbital plans are finally ready for flight Archived from the original on April 18 2015 Retrieved April 18 2015 We ve recently completed acceptance testing meaning we ve accepted the engine for suborbital flight on our New Shepard vehicle the end of a very very long development program of 450 test firings of the engine and a cumulative run time of more than 500 min 8 3 h The completion of those tests sets the stage for Blue Origin to begin test flights of the vehicle later this year at its facility in West Texas where they expect a series of flight tests with this vehicle flying in autonomous mode We expect a series of dozens of flights over the extent of the test program taking a couple of years to complete Foust Jeff December 7 2013 Blue Origin shows off its engine NewSpace Journal Archived from the original on December 14 2013 Retrieved December 10 2013 Achenbach Joel September 17 2014 Jeff Bezos s Blue Origin to supply engines for national security space launches The Washington Post Archived from the original on September 25 2014 Retrieved September 27 2014 Ferster Warren September 17 2014 ULA To Invest in Blue Origin Engine as RD 180 Replacement Space News Archived from the original on September 18 2014 Retrieved September 19 2014 Boyle Alan October 31 2022 Blue Origin completes delivery of BE 4 rocket engines for first ULA Vulcan launch GeekWire Retrieved November 7 2022 Jeff Bezos unveils mock up of Blue Origin s lunar lander Blue Moon Archived May 9 2019 at the Wayback Machine Loren Grush The Verge May 9 2019 Blue Origin fires up the engine of its future Moon lander for the first timeArchived May 9 2019 at the Wayback Machine Loren Grush The Verge June 20 2019 BE 7 Archived from the original on May 11 2019 Retrieved May 11 2019 Aerojet Motor Plays Key Role in Successful Blue Origin Pad Escape Aerojet Rocketdyne Archived from the original on May 14 2018 Retrieved May 14 2018 Aerojet Rocketdyne Motor Plays Key Role in Successful Blue Origin In Flight Crew Escape Test Aerojet Rocketdyne Archived from the original on May 14 2018 Retrieved May 14 2018 a b Blue Origin Conducts Successful Pad Escape Test Blue Origin October 22 2012 Archived from the original on December 15 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 a b Foust Jeff October 5 2016 Blue Origin successfully tests New Shepard abort system SpaceNews Retrieved October 5 2016 Stile Marc October 20 2016 Bezos rocket company Blue Origin is the new owner of an old warehouse in Kent bizjournals com Puget Sound Business Journal Archived from the original on March 2 2017 Retrieved February 16 2017 Jeff Bezos Blue Origin space venture has plans for big expansion of Seattle area HQ Geekwire com February 22 2017 Archived from the original on February 23 2017 Retrieved August 11 2017 Blue Origin officially opens its new HQ and R amp D center TechCrunch Retrieved September 12 2020 Blue Origin takes one giant leap across the street to space venture s new HQ in Kent GeekWire January 6 2020 Retrieved September 12 2020 Blue Origin will build its rocket engine in Alabama because the space industry is ruled by politics The Verge Archived from the original on July 17 2018 Retrieved July 17 2018 Blue Origin opens rocket engine factory SpaceNews February 17 2020 Retrieved October 6 2020 Price Wayne T March 12 2016 Jeff Bezos Blue Origin could change the face of space travel Florida Today Archived from the original on January 6 2018 Retrieved March 13 2016 a b Foust Jeff March 8 2016 Blue Origin plans growth spurt this year SpaceNews Retrieved March 13 2016 Bezos Blue Origin to build launch rockets in Fla USA TODAY Archived from the original on July 17 2018 Retrieved July 17 2018 Blue Origin s Rocket Factory Breaks Ground June 2016 accessed Feb 2022 Blue Origin July 5 2007 Archived from the original on July 5 2007 Retrieved December 14 2019 Graczyk Michael November 14 2006 Private space firm launches 1st test rocket Associated Press Archived from the original on January 7 2007 Retrieved January 9 2007 Boyle Alan March 23 2007 Rocket Revelations MSNBC Archived from the original on January 19 2008 Retrieved January 29 2008 Recently Completed Historical Launch Data FAA AST Archived from the original on March 11 2008 Retrieved February 3 2008 Recently Completed Historical Launch Data FAA AST Archived from the original on March 11 2008 Retrieved May 30 2011 Harwood Bill April 30 2015 Bezos Blue Origin completes first test flight of New Shepard spacecraft Spaceflight Now via CBS News Retrieved May 11 2015 Amos Jonathan November 24 2015 New Shepard Bezos claims success on second spaceship flight BBC News Archived from the original on July 13 2018 Retrieved November 26 2015 Pasztor Andy November 24 2015 Jeff Bezos s Blue Origin Succeeds in Landing Spent Rocket Back on Earth Wall Street Journal Retrieved November 24 2015 Clark Stephen January 23 2016 Blue Origin s reusable New Shepard booster flies again Spaceflight Now Launch Land Repeat Archived from the original on January 24 2016 Retrieved January 23 2016 April 2016 Calla Cofield 04 April 4 2016 Launch Land Repeat Blue Origin s Amazing Rocket Liftoff amp Landing in Pictures Space com Retrieved March 24 2020 Calandrelli Emily April 2 2016 Blue Origin launches and lands the same rocket for a third time Retrieved April 3 2016 a b Boyle Alan June 19 2016 Jeff Bezos Blue Origin live streams its spaceship s risky test flight GeekWire Retrieved June 21 2016 New Shepard In flight Escape Test Blue Origin Retrieved March 24 2020 Crew Capsule 2 0 First Flight Blue Origin Retrieved March 24 2020 Blue Origin flies next generation New Shepard vehicle SpaceNews com December 13 2017 Retrieved March 24 2020 Apogee 351 000 Feet Blue Origin Retrieved March 24 2020 Clark Stephen Video Blue Origin flies New Shepard rocket for eighth time Spaceflight Now a b Marcia Dunn July 19 2018 Jeff Bezos Blue Origin launches spacecraft higher than ever Associated Press Retrieved July 19 2018 Grush Loren January 23 2019 Blue Origin successfully launches and lands first New Shepard rocket of 2019 The Verge Clark Stephen Blue Origin reschedules New Shepard launch for Wednesday Spaceflight Now Retrieved January 23 2019 Blue Origin New Shepard Mission 10 Q1 2019 collectSPACE Messages www collectspace com Retrieved January 23 2019 a b Clark Stephen Blue Origin one step closer to human flights after successful suborbital launch Spaceflight Now Retrieved May 9 2019 a b New Shepard sets reusability mark on latest suborbital spaceflight SpaceNews com December 11 2019 Retrieved March 24 2020 Boyle Alan December 8 2019 Watch Blue Origin send thousands of postcards to space and back on test flight Retrieved December 10 2019 New Shepard Mission NS 12 Updates Blue Origin Retrieved December 10 2019 New Shepard Mission NS 13 Launch Updates Blue Origin Retrieved January 10 2021 Blue Origin tests passenger accommodations on suborbital launch Spaceflight Now Retrieved January 14 2021 Dress Rehearsal Puts Blue Origin Closer to Human Spaceflight spacepolicyonline com Retrieved April 15 2021 Roulette Joey July 20 2021 Blue Origin successfully sends Jeff Bezos and three others to space and back The Verge Retrieved June 19 2022 Blue Origin blueorigin August 26 2021 Capsule touchdown A wholly successful payload mission for New Shepard A huge congrats to the entire Blue Origin team on another successful flight Tweet via Twitter New Shepard Payload Mission NS 17 to Fly NASA Lunar Landing Experiment and Art Installation Blue Origin Retrieved August 18 2021 Maidenberg Micah October 13 2021 William Shatner Goes to Space on Blue Origin s Second Human Flight Wall Street Journal Retrieved June 19 2022 Beil Adrian December 11 2021 Blue Origin launches NS 19 with full passenger complement NASASpaceFlight com Retrieved June 19 2022 Wall Mike March 21 2022 Pete Davidson s spaceflight replacement is Blue Origin s Gary Lai Space com Retrieved June 19 2022 New Shepard Mission NS 21 to Fly Six Customer Astronauts Including First Mexican Born Woman to Visit Space Blue Origin May 9 2022 Retrieved June 19 2022 First Egyptian and Portuguese Astronauts to join Dude Perfect Cofounder on New Shepard s 22nd Flight Blue Origin Retrieved July 25 2022 Foust Jeff July 18 2014 Bezos Investment in Blue Origin Exceeds 500 Million Space News Archived from the original on July 19 2014 Retrieved July 20 2014 St Fleur Nicholas April 5 2017 Jeff Bezos Says He was Selling 1 Billion a Year in Amazon Stock to Finance Race to Space The New York Times Archived from the original on April 7 2017 Retrieved April 23 2017 Rocket fire of the vanities Bezos space trip brings criticism from Earth bound philanthropists The Boston Globe BostonGlobe com Erwin Sandra October 10 2018 Air Force awards launch vehicle development contracts to Blue Origin Northrop Grumman ULA SpaceNews com Retrieved October 11 2018 a b c Blue Origin Space Act Agreement PDF Nasa gov Archived PDF from the original on November 22 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 a b Morring Frank Jr April 22 2011 Five Vehicles Vie To Succeed Space Shuttle Aviation Week Archived from the original on December 21 2011 Retrieved February 23 2011 the CCDev 2 awards and went to Blue Origin Boeing Sierra Nevada Corp and Space Exploration Technologies Inc SpaceX Erwin Sandra April 8 2019 Blue Origin urging Air Force to postpone launch competition SpaceNews com Retrieved October 19 2019 Foust Jeff February 25 2021 Blue Origin delays first launch of New Glenn to late 2022 Space News Retrieved February 25 2021 Blue Origin Space Act Agreement Amendment One PDF NASA Archived PDF from the original on November 22 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 NASA Selects Commercial Firms to Begin Development of Crew Transportation Concepts and Technology Demonstrations for Human Spaceflight Using Recovery Act Funds press release NASA February 1 2010 Archived from the original on February 3 2010 Retrieved February 2 2010 Jeff Foust Blue Origin proposes orbital vehicle Newspacejournal com Archived from the original on April 26 2015 Retrieved December 5 2013 Commercial Crew and Cargo Program PDF www aiaa org Archived from the original PDF on June 10 2010 Commercial Crew Development CCDev Round One Companies Have Reached Substantial Hardware Milestones in Only 9 Months New Images and Data Show PDF Commercialspaceflight com Archived from the original PDF on April 21 2012 Retrieved December 5 2013 Blue Origin CCDev 2 Space Act Agreement PDF Procurement ksc nasa gov Archived from the original PDF on February 15 2013 Retrieved December 5 2013 NASA announces 1 1 billion in support for a trio of spaceships Cosmicclog nbcnews com Archived from the original on May 29 2014 Retrieved December 5 2013 Matthews Mark K August 18 2013 Musk Bezos fight to win lease of iconic NASA launchpad Orlando Sentinel Archived from the original on August 27 2013 Retrieved August 21 2013 a b Messier Doug September 10 2013 Blue Origin Files Protest Over Lease on Pad 39A Parabolic Arc Archived from the original on September 25 2013 Retrieved September 11 2013 a b Messier Doug December 12 2013 Blue Origin Loses GAO Appeal Over Pad 39A Bid Process Parabolic Arc Archived from the original on December 16 2013 Retrieved December 13 2013 Foust Jeff September 21 2013 A minor kerfuffle over LC 39A letters Space Politics Archived from the original on September 25 2013 Retrieved September 25 2013 Dean James April 15 2014 With nod to history SpaceX gets launch pad 39A OK Florida Today Archived from the original on July 30 2014 Retrieved September 16 2014 Sheetz Michael April 30 2020 NASA awards contracts to Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk to land astronauts on the moon CNBC Retrieved September 12 2020 Christian Davenport April 30 2020 Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk win contracts for spacecraft to land NASA astronauts on the moon The Washington Post Retrieved September 12 2020 As Artemis Moves Forward NASA Picks SpaceX to Land Next Americans on Moon NASA Press Release April 16 2021 Retrieved April 20 2021 Musk Bezos Feud Intensifies Blue Origin Protests NASA Choice of SpaceX Lunar Lander Gizmodo April 27 2021 Retrieved April 27 2021 Protest of Blue Origin Federation LLC against National Aeronautics and Space Administration award of Option A contract for Human Landing System under Broad Agency Announcement NNH19ZCQ001K APPENDIX H HLS PDF Retrieved April 27 2021 Statement on Blue Origin Dynetics Decision U S Government Accountability Office Retrieved February 1 2022 Bezos rocket engine selected for new Vulcan rocket spaceflightnow com Archived from the original on September 29 2018 Retrieved September 28 2018 XS 1 Program to Ease Access to Space Enters Phase 2 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Archived from the original on May 21 2016 Retrieved May 16 2016 Giangreco Leigh February 25 2020 Space Force s Second in Command Explains What the Hell It Actually Does Medium Retrieved March 19 2020 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blue Origin Official website Coordinates 47 24 37 N 122 14 15 W 47 41028 N 122 23750 W 47 41028 122 23750 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Blue Origin amp oldid 1143469705, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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