A New Shepard rocket from Blue Origin crashed back to Earth shortly after takeoff. Fortunately, there were no injuries and the capsule, which “only carried experiments”, managed to land by parachute to a safe place.
According to a report published on the website of JapanTodaythe takeoff was on Monday, September 12, and is the first launch accident of the space travel company.
There was no one on board the Blue Origin flight, which used the same kind of rocket they send paying customers to go to the edge of space on.
The rocket is now on the ground pending the outcome of an investigation, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
What happened?
The New Shepard rocket was barely a minute into its flight from West Texas as bright yellow flames shot out around the single engine at the bottomas the shared images show.
The capsule’s emergency launch abort system activated immediately, lifting the craft overhead, and several minutes later the capsule parachuted onto the remote desert floor.
The rocket crashed and no injuries or damage were reported, the FAA reported. For its part, Blue Origin reported on the case via Twitter: “During today’s flight, the capsule’s exhaust system successfully separated the capsule from the booster. The propellant hit the ground. There are no reported injuries; all staff have been accounted for”.
During today’s flight, the capsule escape system successfully separated the capsule from the booster. The booster hit the ground. There are no reported injuries; all personnel have been accounted for.
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) September 12, 2022
The Kent, Washington-based company also released a video showing images of the malfunction: “Booster failure in today’s unmanned flight. Exhaust system worked as designed”.
Blue Origin did not share photos or clips of the rocket, only of the capsule. Usually, the rocket lands upright on the desert floor and is then recycled for future flights. The mishap occurred when the plane was traveling at nearly 700 mph (1,126 kph) at an altitude of about 28,000 feet (8,500 meters).