{"id":18434,"date":"2018-07-17T23:01:42","date_gmt":"2018-07-17T15:01:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/blue-origin-counts-down-to-high-altitude-escape-test-of-new-shepard-spaceship\/"},"modified":"2018-07-17T23:01:42","modified_gmt":"2018-07-17T15:01:42","slug":"blue-origin-counts-down-to-high-altitude-escape-test-of-new-shepard-spaceship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/blue-origin-counts-down-to-high-altitude-escape-test-of-new-shepard-spaceship\/","title":{"rendered":"Blue Origin counts down to high-altitude escape test of New Shepard spaceship"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Blue
Blue Origin is preparing its New Shepard suborbital spaceship for a test flight that\u2019s expected to push the envelope. (Blue Origin Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, says it\u2019ll push its New Shepard suborbital spaceship \u201cto its limits\u201d during its ninth flight test.<\/p>\n

The test is set to take place as early as 8 a.m. PT Wednesday.<\/p>\n

In a tweet, the company said it would conduct a high-altitude escape motor test to check the procedure for an emergency late in the flight sequence. A follow-up tweet said Blue Origin\u2019s website would offer live video and commentary from its West Texas test facility, starting 20 minutes before launch.<\/p>\n

So far, flight tests have been conducted autonomously, without a crew. But the Kent, Wash.-based company says it\u2019s aiming to start sending people on quick trips to the edge of space by the end of the year.<\/p>\n

For the third time, a test dummy nicknamed Mannequin Skywalker will be sitting in one of the crew capsule\u2019s passenger seats, collecting data about the quality of the ride.<\/p>\n

There\u2019ll also be a variety of scientific payloads in the capsule, designed to take advantage of the few minutes of weightlessness experienced at the top of the up-and-down trajectory.<\/p>\n

The manifest includes a suite of payloads from Blue Origin employees, contributed through an internal \u201cFly My Stuff\u201d program. Blue Origin didn\u2019t specify how many of the payloads are scientific experiments, as opposed to personal items that are destined to become \u201cspace-flown\u201d memorabilia.<\/p>\n

Blue Origin said other payloads include:<\/p>\n