Reusable Rocket

For John, BLUF:  Now this is a big deal.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Writers Dave Mosher and Kelly Dickerson tell us "Jeff Bezos just made history with a reusable rocket test".  Yes, Mr Jeff Bezos is the owner of The Washington Post (and of Amazon).

The story has accompanying video.

Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket lifts off on Nov. 23, 2015.

Blue Origin, the commercial spaceflight company founded by Amazon entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, claims to have flown and landed the world's first truly reusable suborbital rocket.

"Rockets have always been expendable.  Not anymore," Bezos wrote in a blog post.  "Now safely tucked away at our launch site in West Texas is the rarest of beasts, a used rocket."

The New Shepard rocket lifted off from Blue Origin's launch facility in Van Horn, Texas, on Nov. 23, 2015, flew about 2,800 mph, and soared to more than 62 miles above the Earth, the company said in a press release.

After deploying a space capsule, the rocket then plummeted back toward the ground, reignited its booster, and — in a world first — gently and safely touched down in the middle of a landing target.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff