Overview
New Shepard is Blue Origin's fully reusable suborbital launch system, named after astronaut Alan Shepard — the first American in space. It consists of a single-engine booster and a pressurised crew capsule, designed to carry up to six passengers past the Kármán line (100 km altitude) for a brief period of weightlessness before returning to Earth. The booster lands vertically and the capsule descends under parachutes.
Key Specifications
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Operator | Blue Origin |
| First Crewed Flight | 20 July 2021 (NS-16) |
| Height | 18.3 m (60 ft) booster + capsule |
| Engine | 1 × BE-3 (liquid hydrogen / LOX) |
| Thrust | 490 kN (110,000 lbf) |
| Apogee | 100–107 km (above Kármán line) |
| Crew Capacity | 6 passengers |
| Weightlessness Duration | ~3–4 minutes |
| Reusability | Fully reusable (booster + capsule) |
| Launch Site | Launch Site One, West Texas |
Mission Profile
A typical New Shepard flight lasts approximately 11 minutes. The booster lifts off vertically, accelerates to Mach 3+, and the capsule separates at approximately 75 km altitude. The capsule coasts past the Kármán line while passengers experience 3–4 minutes of weightlessness and views of Earth's curvature through the largest windows ever flown in space. The booster lands vertically near the launch pad, and the capsule descends under three main parachutes with a retro-thrust landing.
Crewed Flights
New Shepard's first crewed flight (NS-16) on 20 July 2021 carried Jeff Bezos, his brother Mark, aviator Wally Funk (at age 82, the oldest person to fly to space at that time) and student Oliver Daemen. Subsequent flights have carried paying customers, research payloads and notable passengers including actor William Shatner.
NS-23 Anomaly
In September 2022, an uncrewed New Shepard mission (NS-23) experienced a booster failure approximately 65 seconds after liftoff. The capsule escape system activated successfully and the capsule landed safely under parachutes — demonstrating the abort system works as designed. Crewed flights were suspended pending investigation and have resumed cautiously.
Suborbital vs Orbital
New Shepard is not an orbital vehicle — it reaches space briefly but does not achieve orbital velocity (~28,000 km/h). For orbital missions, Blue Origin is developing New Glenn, a much larger rocket capable of delivering 45,000 kg to LEO.