Blue Origin is temporarily giving up space tourism. What is the new goal of Jeff Bezos' company
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket (photo source JOE MARINO / UPI / Profimedia)
The American space company Blue Origin, of the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, announced on Friday that it will suspend space tourism flights for at least two years, in order to focus on the “human capabilities of the company for the lunar program”, reports DPA on Saturday, taken over by Agerpres.
“Blue Origin announced today that it will pause its New Shepard launches and reallocate resources to further accelerate the development of the company's human capabilities for the lunar program,” according to a company statement.
“The decision reflects Blue Origin's commitment to the nation's goal of returning to the Moon and establishing a permanent and sustained lunar presence,” the statement added.
European rivals SpaceX and Blue Origin are preparing to launch a rocket on a test flight
Blue Origin is involved in NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years as a basis for future missions to Mars.
Blue Origin is offering short trips for space tourists from 2021. Bezos was one of the passengers on the inaugural manned flight.
According to the company, a total of 98 people have been in space on 38 flights – including singer Katy Perry and actor William Shatner.
Space tourism for wealthy clients has been criticized from the beginning for its limited scientific benefits, its negative impact on the environment and its elitist nature. Blue Origin does not officially disclose the price of the trips, but estimates revolve around the amount of several hundred thousand dollars.
