Jeff Bezos unveils plans to build a new monster rocket

[Buster's Uncle]

Jeff Bezos just unveiled plans to build a new monster rocket that could give SpaceX a run for its money
Business Insider
By Jessica Orwig  3 hours ago



Today, during a media invent at Florida's premier launch complex on Cape Canaveral, billionaire Jeff Bezos announced that his private space company Blue Origin will be transitioning from its base in Texas and joining the ranks of SpaceX and Boeing at Florida's premiere launch facility in Cape Canaveral.

But Bezos waited to announce the most exciting news for last, when he rolled on stage a poster of Blue Origin's brand new monster rocket that could take the company to greater heights than ever before. Here's a picture of the never-before-seen rocket:



(Screen grab from NASA Ustream)


The new rocket looks completely different from the "New Shepard" rocket that Blue Origin is currently testing for commercial spaceflight and looks like this:



(Blue Origin)


The big difference between the two is that this new rocket will be significantly bigger and more powerful than "New Shepherd."

Up to this point, Blue Origin's plans were to usher the public into space for a brief 10-minute experience of weightlessness, not to mention a great view of Earth. This was for entertainment because "New Shepard" is not built for deep-space exploration like SpaceX's Falcon 9 or Boeing's Atlas V rockets.

But with this new monster rocket — which has not yet been tested, as far as we know — Blue Origin is thinking much bigger. The rocket will run on BE-4 engines instead of th BE-3 engines powering "New Shepard."

Right now, Blue Origin is teaming up with one of SpaceX's biggest rivals, the United Launch Alliance, to build these new liquid rocket BE-4 engines. Here's a shot of Bezos next to a model of a BE-4 rocket:



(Win McNamee/Getty Images)


Although Bezos would not provide many details about the purpose of the rocket — whether it is built to usher astronauts to the International Space Station or beyond — it appears to be similar to SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets. It is even designed to be fully reusable, Bezos said.

Here's a shot of a Falcon 9 for comparison:



AmericaSpace(SpaceX)
 

Right now, SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets are the only reusable rockets capable of reaching the International Space Station — which is orbiting in space at too great a height for "New Shepard" to achieve.

If Blue Origin's new, yet-to-be-named rocket is a success, it could become a major contributor in the future of reusable rockets and SpaceX competitor.

Bezos said that Blue Origin will provide more details about this mystery, monster rocket next year.


http://news.yahoo.com/jeff-bezos-just-unveiled-plans-151746446.html

[Unorthodox]

Falcon 9's have yet to prove to be reuseable, stupid article.

Anyway. 

Kinda surprised by Boeing/Lockheed on this.  The Aerojet engines would be a much safer partner as they were essentially the same russian engines everyone's been using for decades, but newly manufactured versions instead of repurposed ones.  AFAIK, the BE-4 hasn't even been tested yet.