The Blue Origin rocket blasted off from West Texas and was barely a minute into the flight when bright yellow flames shot out from around the single engine at the bottom. The capsule's emergency launch abort system immediately kicked in, lifting the craft off the top. Several minutes later, the capsule parachuted onto the remote desert floor.
Although this New Shepard rocket was dedicated to flying experiments, it was the same kind used for launching people on 10-minute rides to the edge of space. The rocket is grounded pending the outcome of an investigation, said the FAA, which is in charge of public safety during commercial space launches and landings.
"Booster failure on today's uncrewed flight. Escape system performed as designed," the Kent, Washington-based company tweeted close to an hour later.The mishap occurred as the rocket was traveling nearly 700 mph at an altitude of about 28,000 feet . There was no video shown of the rocket -- only the capsule -- after the failure. It happened around the point the rocket is under the maximum amount of pressure, called max-q.
Another waste of money.