Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launches first rocket since 2022 crash
- The New Shepard lifted off successfully in Texas, carrying a capsule full of experiments from last year’s failed test
- The capsule made it to the fringes of space for a few minutes of weightlessness before parachuting back down to the desert
Jeff Bezos’ space company successfully launched a rocket carrying experiments on Tuesday, its first flight since engine trouble caused a crash more than a year ago.
The New Shepard rocket soared from West Texas, lifting a capsule full of tests, many of which were aboard the failed Blue Origin launch in September 2022. No one was aboard that flight or this latest one.
This time, the capsule made it to the fringes of space, exposing the experiments from Nasa and others to a few minutes of weightlessness, before parachuting back down to the desert.
The rocket landed first, after releasing the capsule. It reached an altitude of 107km (66 miles) during the 10-minute flight.
During 2022’s failed launch, the rocket started to veer off course shortly after lift-off, prompting the escape system to kick in and catapult the capsule off the top. The capsule landed safely, but the rocket came crashing down.