New Shepard NS-14: Astronaut Experience Upgrades

Blue Origin’s next New Shepard flight is targeting liftoff on Thursday, December 17, at 9:15 am CST / 15:15 UTC. Current weather conditions are favorable. Mission NS-14 is the 14th flight for the New Shepard program.

For this mission, the capsule will be outfitted with upgrades to improve the astronaut experience as the program nears human space flight. Some of the upgrades include improvements to environmental features such as acoustics and temperature regulation inside the capsule, crew display panels, and speakers with a microphone and push-to-talk button at each seat. The mission will also test a number of astronaut communication and safety alert systems. The capsule will be outfitted with six flight seats, including one occupied by test Mannequin Skywalker.

Also inside the capsule, Blue Origin’s nonprofit Club for the Future will fly more than 50,000 postcards to space and back from students around the globe. A selection of postcards will fly in Mannequin Skywalker’s pockets. This is the third batch of Club for the Future postcards flown to space.

All mission crew supporting this launch are exercising strict social distancing and safety measures to mitigate COVID-19 risks to personnel, customers, and surrounding communities.

You can watch the launch live at BlueOrigin.com. The pre-show will begin T-30 minutes and provide more mission details.

Follow @BlueOrigin on Twitter for launch updates.

 —Gradatim Ferociter