New Shepard flew again for the seventh time on Dec. 12, 2017, from Blue Origin’s West Texas Launch Site.
Known as Mission 7 (M7), the mission featured the next-generation booster and the first flight of Crew Capsule 2.0.
– Crew Capsule 2.0 features large windows, measuring 2.4 feet wide, 3.6 feet tall.
– M7 also included 12 commercial, research and education payloads onboard.
M7 Mission Details
– Launch time: 10:59 a.m. CST
– Booster Apogee
— 322,032 feet (AGL) (98.16 kilometers)
— 325,702 feet (MSL) (99.27 kilometers)
– Crew Capsule 2.0 Apogee
— 322,405 feet (AGL) (98.27 kilometers)
— 326,075 feet (MSL) (99.39 kilometers)
– Maximum ascent velocity: Mach 2.94
– Booster maximum descent velocity: Mach 3.74
– Booster re-ignition: 3,716 feet (AGL)
– Controlled vertical landing of Booster: 6.75 mph
– Deployment of Crew Capsule 2.0 drogue parachutes: 6,463 feet (AGL)
– Landing of Crew Capsule 2.0 under parachutes: 11:10 a.m. CST
– Total mission elapsed time: 10 minutes and 6 seconds
“Today’s flight of New Shepard was a tremendous success. It marks the inaugural flight of our next-generation Crew Capsule as we continue step-by-step progress in our test flight program,” said Bob Smith, CEO, Blue Origin.
“Congratulations to the entire Blue Origin team on a job well done and to our payload customers that gathered important data on the suborbital environment. Gradatim Ferociter.”
