Jeff Bezos Reveals His 'Blue Moon' Lunar LanderBlue Origin is also working on a rocket engine for its moon missions.

ByMariella Moon

This story originally appeared onEngadget

Blue Origin via engadget

Blue Origin is building a lunar lander aptly called the Blue Moon.Jeff Bezoshasannouncedhis space company'sshared goal与美国航天局回到地球的命运的同情nion in the next few years at an event for media and space industry executives. There, the tech exec has also revealed that Blue Origin is developing a new engine called BE-7 with a 10,000 lbf thrust, strong enough to power the rocket that's ferrying the lander and its large payloads to space. Its first test fire could happen as soon as this summer.

Blue Origin says the cargo variant it has just revealed can carry 3.6 metric tons to its destination. It's also working on another variant that's capable of carrying a "6.5-metric-ton, human-rated ascent stage." While Bezos didn't mention particular dates, the company believes it can meet the government's goal of putting Americans back on the moon by 2024.

The Blue Moon initiativeseeksto build infrastructure on the surface of Earth's natural satellite to the point that entrepreneurs can start building space businesses. Bezos talked about the possibility of harnessing resources there for energy back home, since ours are bound to run out in the future. In addition, he said the moon is a good place for manufacturing, since it will take 24 times less energy to haul materials from its surface compared to the Earth due to its lower gravity.

A couple of years ago, when Bezos first teased the project, he said it would start by sending a couple of tons of cargo to the moon to build a lunar base -- it sounds like that's still what the company intends to do. "It's time to go back to the moon, this time to stay," he said.

Mariella Moon is an associate editor at Engadget.

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

领导

Young Workers Don't Want to Become Managers — and This Study Uncovers the Reason Why.

The average person has no interest in becoming a manager anymore, and the missing middle is putting companies at risk.

Business Solutions

This PDF Tool Lets You Edit and More — and It's Just $30 Through EOD Today

It's the last day to get this handy productivity tool.

Business Ideas

55 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2023

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2023.