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Blue Origin Pauses Space Tourism for Moon Mission
31 Jan
Summary
- New Shepard flights paused for at least two years.
- Resources redirected to lunar lander development for NASA.
- Blue Origin has a $3.6 billion contract with NASA.
Blue Origin is pausing flights of its New Shepard rocket for at least two years, shifting resources to accelerate its human lunar capabilities. This decision effectively cancels the centerpiece space tourism vehicle to focus on building a moon lander for NASA.
New Shepard, a reusable rocket that has flown dozens of passengers and experiments since 2021, was Blue Origin's first rocket. The company will redirect its people and resources toward developing lunar capabilities, including the heavy-lift New Glenn rocket.
The pause comes as Blue Origin works on its Blue Moon lunar lander, funded partly by a $3.6 billion NASA contract. This lander is slated to send U.S. astronauts to the lunar surface later this decade, competing with SpaceX's Starship lander.
