In its first launch of 2021, Blue Origin launched its New Shepard rocket in West Texas to a height of about 350,000 feet (100 kilometers) carrying the crew capsule with a life-sized test dummy called “Mannequin Skywalker” equipped with a range of new passenger safety, control and comfort systems developed by the Blue Origin team.
The life-size test dummy recorded information during the flight that the Blue Origin team will review for future missions. The crew capsule also carried 50,000 postcards from school kids globally that have now officially been to space (past the Karman line) which will be returned to those students via Blue Origin’s nonprofit “Club for the Future.”
As per the live-streamed video and commentary from the company, it appears to be a successful test that included a takeoff, booster separation, a controlled landing burn and touchdown. The test also included a parachute-aided landing back on terra firma for the crew capsule.
As per the planned finally target of Blue Origin to fly paying private astronauts to suborbital space this is a very successful test and the company is expected to release the outcomes of the test soon.
