SPACE SHAFT
Jeff Bezos breaks world record with his ‘Space Penis’ rocket – beating rival Elon Musk
JEFF Bezos and his private space company Blue Origin have once again successfully launched and landed the New Shepherd rocket ship.
This is the spacecraft's seventh flight so it broke the record for the most reused rocket, beating Elon Musk and SpaceX.
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Despite this amazing feat, all most people can talk about is the fact the rocket looks a bit like a penis.
The New Shepherd craft has had the nickname "Space Penis" for several years now.
That's how lots of people still refer to it on Twitter.
The seventh flight occurred in West Texas on Tuesday this week.
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It saw the 'Space Penis' carry 12 commercial payloads into orbit and then land 10 minutes later.
The tip of the rocket is where astronauts and one day paying passengers will sit.
It can carry up to six people into orbit.
Once there they could float in zero gravity conditions and enjoy the views at 340,000 feet.
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It hasn't yet been revealed how much a ride on the rocket will cost.
Bezos founded Blue Origin in the year 2000.
Musk founded SpaceX in 2002.
Jeff Bezos – who is he?
Here's what you need to know...
- Jeffrey Preston Bezos, better known as Jeff Bezos, is an American tech billionaire
- He made his fortune by founding online retail giant Amazon
- Bezos became the first centi-billionaire according to the Forbes wealth index
- And he was named the 'richest man in history' when his net worth grew to $150 billion in the summer of 2018
- Bezos was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico and then raised in Houston, Texas
- He graduated in 1986 with a degree in electrical engineering and computer science from Princeton University
- Bezos went on to work on Wall Street until 1994, before founding Amazon
- Amazon began as an online bookstore but has since become a global tech giant in retail, streaming, cloud computing and gadgets
- And the billionaire also runs spaceflight firm Blue Origin, which has been operating since 2000
- Estimates in February 2020 put his net worth at $130billion
- Bezos' personal life came under scrutiny in 2019 after he and his wife of 25 years, MacKenzie, announced their decision to divorce
- The divorce was finalised on April 4, 2019
Jeff Bezos responds to accusations that Amazon prices Echo below cost to make it ‘nearly impossible’ for competitors
Most read in Science
In other space news, HBO has a SpaceX TV series in the works.
Mars is looking three times as big in the sky this week.
And, Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster recently passed the Red Planet after he blasted it into space back in 2018.
What are your thoughts on the 'Space Penis' rocket? Let us know in the comments...
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