Blue Origin successfully fires the thrust chamber assembly for its new 100,000 pound thrust BE-3 liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen rocket engine. As part of the company’s Reusable Booster System (RBS), the engines are designed eventually to launch the biconic-shaped Space Vehicle the company is developing in collaboration with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Meanwhile, NASA and Blue Origin signed an agreement last week to extend their Commercial Crew Development Round 2 […]

Officials from NASA and the four CCDev 2 winners held at press conference at the Kennedy Space Center on Thursday morning to discuss the awards and where the companies are heading with their programs over the next year. The event had a fascinating mood to it as NASA and its partners looked forward while soon-to-be-laid-off workers prepared Endeavour for the penultimate flight of the space shuttle program set for the following day.

(more…)