{"id":17906,"date":"2019-10-23T00:32:21","date_gmt":"2019-10-22T16:32:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/jeff-bezos-announces-an-all-star-team-for-blue-origins-blue-moon-lunar-lander\/"},"modified":"2019-10-23T00:32:21","modified_gmt":"2019-10-22T16:32:21","slug":"jeff-bezos-announces-an-all-star-team-for-blue-origins-blue-moon-lunar-lander","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/jeff-bezos-announces-an-all-star-team-for-blue-origins-blue-moon-lunar-lander\/","title":{"rendered":"Jeff Bezos announces an all-star team for Blue Origin\u2019s Blue Moon lunar lander"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_528587\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-528587\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-528587\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bezos-630x522.jpg\" alt=\"Jeff Bezos\" width=\"630\" height=\"522\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bezos-630x522.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bezos-768x636.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bezos-1260x1044.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-528587\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos discusses his space ambitions during a fireside chat at the International Astronautical Congress in Washington, D.C. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos says his Blue Origin space venture is heading up a team of top space companies \u2014 including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Draper \u2014 to build a landing system to take NASA astronauts to the moon as early as 2024.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a national team for a national priority,\u201d Bezos said here at the International Astronautical Congress, where he received the International Astronomical Federation\u2019s first Excellence in Industry Award on Blue Origin\u2019s behalf.<\/p>\n<p>Blue Origin would serve as the prime contractor for the lander project, with its Blue Moon lander serving as the heart of the system.<\/p>\n<p>Bezos said Northrop Grumman, which built the lunar lander for the Apollo program a half-century ago, would be responsible for the orbital transfer vehicle that would take astronauts from a moon-orbiting Gateway platform to a lower lunar orbit.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden; width: 0px; height: 0px;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1186752897083760641&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2019%2Fjeff-bezos-announces-star-team-blue-origins-blue-moon-lunar-lander%2F&amp;sessionId=9285e5de4c35bc9196aa29b99d807658a04ace79&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" data-twitter-extracted-i1782799973346920327=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">It\u2019s time to go back to the Moon, this time to stay. @LockheedMartin @northropgrumman @DraperLab @blueorigin #gradatimferociter pic.twitter.com\/SMEUdriJhh<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) October 22, 2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor for NASA\u2019s Orion deep-space capsule, would build the ascent crew module that would sit atop the Blue Moon lander and bring the astronauts back from the lunar surface. The company would also lead crewed flight operations and training.<\/p>\n<p>Draper, which worked on avionics for Apollo, would work on the descent guidance system and flight avionics.<\/p>\n<p>Blue Origin executives said that the system has been proposed for NASA\u2019s use under the terms of the space agency\u2019s NextSTEP-2 Appendix H solicitation. NASA is expected to select at least a couple of landing systems for further development in January. The systems that are ultimately selected would serve as key elements in NASA\u2019s Artemis program to send \u201cthe first woman and the next man\u201d to the lunar surface in as little as five years.<\/p>\n<p>In May, Bezos unveiled a mockup of the Blue Moon lander and revealed that his privately held space company was working on a hydrogen-fueled BE-7 engine to provide propulsion. During this week\u2019s congress, the mockup has been set up at the same convention center where Bezos made the big reveal.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_528730\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-528730\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-528730\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bluemoon-630x472.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"472\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bluemoon-630x472.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bluemoon-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/191022-bluemoon-1260x945.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-528730\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">GeekWire\u2019s Alan Boyle has his moment with Blue Origin\u2019s Blue Moon lander at the International Astronautical Congress in Washington, D.C. (GeekWire Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Blue Origin\u2019s CEO, Bob Smith, said in a news release that he and his colleagues at Blue Origin were \u201chumbled and inspired to lead this deeply committed team that will land NASA astronauts on the moon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCombining our partners\u2019 heritage with our advance work on the Blue Moon lunar lander and its BE-7 engine, our team is looking forward to working with NASA in support of the Artemis program,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n<p>Lockheed Martin has been working on its own lunar lander concept for NASA\u2019s use, but decided to join forces with Blue Origin for the Appendix H proposal \u2014 partly because the timeline for a 2024 landing is so tight.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe value Blue Origin\u2019s thoughtful approach to developing human-rated flight systems, and are thrilled to be part of a national team with this mix of innovation and experience,\u201d Rick Ambrose, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space, said in a statement. \u201cWe look forward to safely and sustainably returning our nation to the surface of the moon by 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman is already involved in other aspects of the Artemis program, including the solid rocket boosters for NASA\u2019s heavy-lift Space Launch System rocket, the astronaut escape system for the Orion capsule, and the habitation module for the Gateway outpost.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are proud to be a part of the Blue Origin national team to support NASA\u2019s Artemis program and the ambitious goal to return to the moon by 2024,\u201d Blake Larson, corporate vice president and president of Innovation Systems at Northrop Grumman, said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Bezos made his Blue Moon announcement at the end of a fireside chat with incoming IAF President Pascale Ehrenfreunde, who chairs the executive board of Germany\u2019s DLR aerospace agency. Here are other highlights from the chat:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The IAF\u2019s award went to Blue Origin for the Kent, Wash.-based company\u2019s work on the reusable New Shepard suborbital spacecraft, which is undergoing uncrewed test flights in Texas. Bezos played a \u201cgreatest hits\u201d video of New Shepard flights and touted the craft\u2019s BE-3 rocket engine. \u201cWe want the BE-3 engine to be the most used, most flown engine in the world,\u201d he said. Crewed flights are expected to begin next year.<\/li>\n<li>Bezos also showed off a time-lapse video of a 7-meter-wide (23-foot-wide) nose cone for Blue Origin\u2019s orbital-class New Glenn rocket being fabricated at a Florida factory. The video showed a robotic carrier, not unlike the ones used at Bezos\u2019 better-known business venture, trundling the structure across an expansive factory floor. \u201cNew Glenn will fly in 2021,\u201d Bezos said.<\/li>\n<li>Bezos repeated his oft-expressed view that lowering the cost of access to space should unleash a burst of entrepreneurial creativity, analogous to the rise of internet-based ventures such as Amazon and Facebook. \u201cI want to live a long time so I can see that,\u201d the 55-year-old billionaire said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos discusses his space ambitions during a fireside chat at the International Astronautical Congress in Washington, D.C. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle) WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos says his Blue Origin space venture is heading up a team of top space companies \u2014 including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[304,1508,509,4572,1046,472,2043,625,554],"class_list":["post-17906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-artemis","tag-blue-moon","tag-blue-origin","tag-draper-lab","tag-jeff-bezos","tag-lockheed-martin","tag-lunar-lander","tag-moon","tag-northrop-grumman"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17906"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17906"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17906\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17906"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17906"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17906"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}