UPSC Articles
New Shephard rocket system
Part of: GS Prelims and GS -III – Space
In news Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos came back to earth after a 10-min flight to space on Blue Origin’s New Shepard spacecraft.
What is the Significance of the mission?
- The astronauts experienced three to four minutes of zero-gravity and travelled above the Kármán Line, the internationally-recognised boundary of space.
What is New Shephard, the rocket system?
- It is a rocket system meant to take tourists to space successfully.
- The system is built by Blue Origin, Private Space Company based out in USA.
- New Shephard has been named after astronaut Alan Shephard, the first American to go to space.
- It offers flights to space over 100 km above the Earth and accommodation for payloads.
- The system is a fully reusable, vertical takeoff and vertical landing space vehicle
Scientific objectives of the mission:
- It is a rocket system that has been designed to take astronauts and research payloads past the Karman line.
- The idea is to provide easier and more cost-effective access to space meant for purposes such as academic research, corporate technology development, entrepreneurial ventures and space tourism among others.
News Source: TH
