Produced by: Tarun Mishra Designed by: Manoj Kumar
Blue Origin postponed the debut launch of its second human-rated New Shepard spacecraft, designated NS-27, on October 13 due to a GPS system issue. This marks the second delay after a prior attempt on October 7 was called off due to a rocket issue.
Credit: Blue Origin
The company identified a GPS malfunction as the reason for the latest postponement. Blue Origin announced on social media that they were standing down to troubleshoot the issue and that a new launch date would be provided.
Credit: Blue Origin
The NS-27 mission involves launching a new rocket-capsule combination for a brief suborbital trip. The vehicle includes a first stage, Booster 5, and a crew capsule named RSS Kármán Line, designed for human spaceflight but uncrewed for this mission.
Credit: Blue Origin
Though no astronauts will fly on NS-27, the mission will carry 12 research payloads, including advanced navigation systems for Blue Origin’s New Shepard and New Glenn rockets, and LIDAR sensors designed for lunar operations.
Credit: Blue Origin
NS-27 marks the first flight of Blue Origin’s second human-rated New Shepard spacecraft. The new vehicle incorporates upgrades for better performance and reusability, as well as enhanced payload accommodations.
Credit: Blue Origin
To date, New Shepard has completed 26 flights, with eight of those carrying crew. All previous crewed missions used the Booster 4/RSS First Step combo. The new spacecraft will expand Blue Origin’s flight capacity for future missions.
October 13 was an eventful day for spaceflight, as SpaceX conducted its Starship Flight 5 test and delayed the undocking of its Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station due to weather concerns.
Blue Origin plans for this new spacecraft to support growing demand for space tourism and research payloads, with more missions expected after the resolution of technical issues.