Blue Origin, the private aerospace manufacturer and spaceflight services company founded by Jeff Bezos, has suspended its suborbital space tourism program, New Shepard. The decision marks a significant shift in the company's priorities as it shifts focus to more ambitious goals, including establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon.
The New Shepard program, which has been in operation since 2015, has flown 98 people into space over the past few years and carried out numerous successful launches and landings. However, despite its impressive track record, Blue Origin's CEO Dave Limp stated that the company needs to "redirect our people and resources towards further acceleration of our human lunar capabilities, inclusive of New Glenn."
The suspension of the New Shepard program is seen as a major departure from Bezos' vision for a commercial space industry that would provide opportunities for thousands of people to experience space travel. The decision has been met with both praise and criticism from industry insiders, who see it as a necessary step towards achieving more ambitious goals, such as establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon.
The move is also seen as a strategic move by Blue Origin to focus on its New Glenn rocket program, which aims to launch cargo and crew missions to the lunar surface. This shift in priorities is likely to have significant implications for the US space industry, particularly in terms of competition with China for access to the Moon.
While the suspension of the New Shepard program may be a disappointment to those who had been waiting for the opportunity to fly on the spacecraft, it is seen as a necessary step towards achieving more ambitious goals and securing the future of space exploration. The decision also underscores the challenges faced by companies like Blue Origin in balancing short-term commercial interests with long-term strategic priorities.
The New Shepard program, which has been in operation since 2015, has flown 98 people into space over the past few years and carried out numerous successful launches and landings. However, despite its impressive track record, Blue Origin's CEO Dave Limp stated that the company needs to "redirect our people and resources towards further acceleration of our human lunar capabilities, inclusive of New Glenn."
The suspension of the New Shepard program is seen as a major departure from Bezos' vision for a commercial space industry that would provide opportunities for thousands of people to experience space travel. The decision has been met with both praise and criticism from industry insiders, who see it as a necessary step towards achieving more ambitious goals, such as establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon.
The move is also seen as a strategic move by Blue Origin to focus on its New Glenn rocket program, which aims to launch cargo and crew missions to the lunar surface. This shift in priorities is likely to have significant implications for the US space industry, particularly in terms of competition with China for access to the Moon.
While the suspension of the New Shepard program may be a disappointment to those who had been waiting for the opportunity to fly on the spacecraft, it is seen as a necessary step towards achieving more ambitious goals and securing the future of space exploration. The decision also underscores the challenges faced by companies like Blue Origin in balancing short-term commercial interests with long-term strategic priorities.
. I thought it was gonna be so cool to blast off into space with a bunch of random people 
. But at the same time, I get what Blue Origin is trying to do. They wanna make humanity a multi-planetary species and all that 
. And if they think suspending New Shepard will help 'em achieve those goals, then fair play 
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. They'll probably find other ways to get people into space, even if it's not through a suborbital ride 
. So, I guess we'll just have to wait and see what's in store for us 
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. Will other companies follow suit? Will it change the way people experience space travel entirely? The possibilities are endless 
!
guess that's a 98-person free ride 
. but seriously, it's kinda cool that they're shifting focus to the moon now, idk about me tho, i was kinda stoked to see humans on the moon again 
. and honestly, blue origin needs to get its act together if they wanna keep up with the big boys 
. But at the same time, I get it. Blue Origin has bigger plans and they can't just keep putting bandaids on their lunar ambitions 
. Still, I'm hoping they'll find a way to make New Shepard's legacy live on – maybe as a more experimental program or something? Fingers crossed 
but i think its super smart move 4 blue origin 2 shift focus 2 the moon 
I mean, who doesn't wanna be one of the lucky few to experience weightlessness and see our beautiful planet from space? 
But at the same time, I get it - Blue Origin's gotta focus on their bigger picture goals, like establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon 
But at the same time, I can totally understand why Blue Origin would need to pivot their focus. They're clearly not just in it for the short-term gains - they've got bigger ambitions, like establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon 
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. It's not easy to balance short-term profits with long-term strategic goals, especially when you're talking about something as ambitious and expensive as sending humans to the Moon 
. But hey, that's all part of what makes space exploration so interesting - it's a constant balancing act between science, business, and human curiosity 
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... guess we'll just hav 2 wait & see wut they come up w/ next 
. It's not gonna be easy, but if it means we'll see more humans on the Moon in no time, then I'm all for it 
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I know Bezos wants to make humanity a multi-planetary species but what about all those people who wanna just chill on New Shepard for a hot second 
? it's not like they're gonna get the same experience by waiting 5-10 years for New Glenn 
! dave limp knows what he's doing 
. we'll get to fly on new shepard again when it's time, and it'll be EPIC 
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And now that it's sus'nded, I'm left feelin all sorts of anxious about when or if we'll ever get 2 experience the thrill of weightless & see the Earth from space 
and make himself a billionaire space lord 
but seriously, who needs suborbital space travel when we can have lunar bases 
It's been amazing to see how far Blue Origin has come since 2015. But at the same time, I get why Bezos is shifting focus to more ambitious goals - like making humanity a multi-planetary species 
. It'll be interesting to see how this affects the US space industry and what new opportunities come out of it