NanoRacks is pleased to have taken part in yet another successful Blue Origin New Shepard space vehicle mission. This morning marked New Shepard's 7th flight, and the third flight in which NanoRacks has managed customer payload integration.
As a part of the NanoRacks teaming agreement with Blue Origin, the Company partakes in both business development and payload integration.
Payload integration begins with customer service through the NanoRacks Mission Management team, and ends with final on-site integration with the customer at Blue Origin's West Texas Launch Site (WTLS). Payloads range from small student NanoLabs flying in the NanoRacks Feather Frame to larger professional-grade payload lockers.
"It is exhilarating to be a part of the NanoRacks payload program, providing all types of researchers a unique microgravity opportunity," says NanoRacks Payload Engineer Mariel Rico.
"Experiments that long for both a cost effective and quick turnaround for technology demonstration in a microgravity environment finally have a place to call their own. It is truly a privilege to work with both our friends at Blue Origin and our incredible team at NanoRacks, to make this opportunity possible."
NanoRacks looks forward to growing the Company's payload capacity on New Shepard, and is currently manufacturing a second Feather Frame for flight, doubling the total payload volume available for smaller educational customers.
"Educator interest in engaging their students with hands on space research has brought us to developing a second Feather Frame," continues Rico.
"This is just one more step in the growing in-space services that NanoRacks is able to offer, and of course, suborbital flights with Blue Origin offer the perfect testbed before committing to an International Space Station microgravity mission."
JPL Deploys a CubeSat for Astronomy
Tiny satellites called CubeSats have attracted a lot of attention in recent years. Besides allowing researchers to test new technologies, their relative simplicity also offers hands-on training to early-career engineers.
A CubeSat recently deployed from the International Space Station is a key example of their potential, experimenting with CubeSats applied to astronomy.
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