Jeff Bezos to launch first rocket into space since fiery mid-air explosion last year

JEFF BEZOS’ rocket company Blue Origin is aiming to launch it’s first vehicle into space, since a fiery mid-air explosion last year.

Blue Origin has circled December 18 as its return to flight date, 15 months after it lost a rocket just after take-off in September 2022.

AlamyThe Blue Origin team recover the New Shepard space capsule which parachuted safely to land following a successful test of the BE-3 reusable rocket in 2016[/caption]

The company’s New Shepherd rocket had previously been ferrying high-flying tourists to the edge of space between July 2021 and August 2022.

This includes Bezos himself.

Blue Origin racked up six flights before it’s hiatus.

All trips were firmly paused when an uncrewed New Shepherd suffered an anomaly at 27,800 feet above the company’s site in Texas, causing it to suddenly explode.

While it was a significant setback for Blue Origin, the incident proved the crew capsule’s emergency escape system worked as intended.

It successfully propelled the capsule away from the explosion before engaging in a parachute-assisted landing in the desert.

A six-month investigation headed by Blue Origin, and overseen by the US’ aviation watchdog, found that a nozzle on the rocket’s engine suffered a “structural fatigue failure”.

This caused a thrust misalignment that triggered the capsule’s emergency escape system.

Now, the rocket company is taking to the skies once more – having redesigned the engine’s combustion chamber and adjusted some operating parameters.

In the upcoming flight, New Shepherd will carry 33 science and research payloads.

The rocket will also hold a whopping 38,000 postcards for Club for the Future, Blue Origin’s initiative aimed at inspiring kids to pursue careers related to STEM subjects.

It’s not yet clear when tourists will be able to return to Blue Origin for trips to the Karman line.