In creating the infrastructure for a future where there are millions of people living and working in space, Blue Origin is also opening the doors to a wide range of scientific possibilities. The New Shepard suborbital spacecraft offers a large-format crew capsule, capable of carrying a wide range of tended and untended high-altitude and microgravity payloads to altitudes above 100 km. Interfaces include standard and custom lockers inside a shirtsleeve capsule environment or exposed to the spaceflight environment in the vehicle's interstage. A variety of use cases from flights of private and federally funded researchers and educators will be shared. The New Glenn orbital launch vehicle is being developed to provide heavy lift capability to LEO, GTO, and beyond. Opportunities for novel large format science and technology demonstrations in its 7-meter fairing will be presented. And an overview of the Blue Moon lunar cargo lander will discuss research avenues enabled by multiple tons of usable cargo delivered to the lunar surface. Models of collaboration with corporate, academic, and government researchers that have shaped each of these unique platforms will also be shared to highlight the importance of cross-industry interchange.

Opening the aperture: Research opportunities on Blue Origin commercial space platforms

2019 Spring National Meeting

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.