Step Inside a Blue Origin Capsule Thanks to It's First-ever Exhibit at the Kennedy Space Center
The capsule itself is a “near-perfect replica.”
Courtesy of NASA/Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
Visitors to Florida’s Kennedy Space Center can now step inside a Blue Origin crew capsule in the first-ever permanent exhibit for Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos’ space company.
The brand-new exhibit allows space enthusiasts to explore a realistic replica of Blue Origin’s New Shepard crew capsule with a virtual reality experience, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex shared with Travel + Leisure. The exhibit is located in the Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex.
The exhibit “uses actual data and imagery to authentically mimic the rocket’s journey above the Kármán Line, the internationally recognized boundary of space,” according to the Kennedy Space Center.
Courtesy of NASA/Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
Visitors to the new exhibit will don VR headsets to simulate the company’s journey above the Kármán Line made more realistic with interactive zero gravity indicators, seat shakers, and audio.
The capsule itself is a “near-perfect replica” of the original with a few things enlarged or made smaller to increase accessibility. The exhibit also features a handicap-accessible flight seat and external VR headset so visitors who can’t enter the capsule on their own can still experience it.
Space enthusiasts can also “send a postcard to space aboard one of Blue Origin's New Shepard rockets,” according to the Kennedy Space Center.
Courtesy of NASA/Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
Bezos first launched human flights on Blue Origin in 2021 with a successful 10 minute mission on the New Shepard rocket. The rocket reached a height of about 66.5 miles, passing the Kármán Line, before floating back down to Earth.
At the time, the passengers — including Bezos himself — experienced about four minutes of weightlessness.
Beyond the new exhibit, the Kennedy Space Center will celebrate the holidays this year with a nighttime projection mapping show featuring the story of a shooting star-turned-snowflake, a new Rocket Tree Trail, and other holiday decor from Dec. 15 through Dec. 30.
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