Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, develops the New Shepard rocket for space tourism.
Blue origin
Jeff Bezos’ space company Blue Origin will soon be selling tickets for rides on its New Shepard space tourism rocket, the company said in a video released Thursday.
“Guys, how exciting is that – come on!” Bezos says the billionaire plays a prominent role in the video.
Blue Origin didn’t reveal how much tickets will cost, merely saying that those who submit their name and email address on a form on the company’s website will be given more details on May 5th.
“Sign up to learn how to buy first seat at New Shepard,” the company’s website says.
The video shows Bezos stepping into the New Shepard capsule after the company’s test flight earlier this month. It shows him driving through the Texas desert, the remote location of New Shepard’s launch facility – especially at the wheel of a Rivian R1T electric vehicle adorned with Blue Origin’s signature feather.
Blue Origin launches a New Shepard rocket from its Texas facility.
Blue origin | gif from @thesheetztweetz
New Shepard is designed to carry up to six people at a time on one trip over the edge of space, with the capsules reaching an altitude of more than 100 kilometers on previous test flights. The capsule spends up to 10 minutes in weightlessness before returning to Earth. The massive windows offer passengers a view.
Virgin Galactic’s shares fell up to 3% in trading after Blue Origin released its video as Bezos’ company will compete with Sir Richard Branson in the niche space of suborbital tourism.
Blue Origin didn’t state how much a ticket would cost to fly New Shepard. To date, Virgin Galactic has sold tickets to about 600 passengers at prices between $ 200,000 and $ 250,000, though the company believes it could raise its prices significantly on its first commercial flights. In the past, Bezos has announced that Blue Origin will rate New Shepard flights similar to its competitors.
Virgin Galactic’s leadership previously stressed that the demand for space tourism flights will significantly accelerate supply over the next decade, leaving both companies room to thrive.