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| Amazon founder offers $2 billion to NASA |
The Amazon founder has offered NASA a discount of at least $2 billion to place an order with his space company for the human moon landing system that rival Elon Musk won earlier this year.
Bezos' new product is the latest in a series of ongoing promotion efforts to win the Blue Origin contract.
In a letter to NASA officials, the Amazon founder said that if NASA added the Blue Origin Blue Moon probe as a major milestone in the agency's manned landing system, it would be part of the first two batches. Annual contracts of up to $2 billion. finally gave up.
In addition, Blue Origin is self-funding a test launch of the Blue Moon spacecraft into low Earth orbit, an achievement that could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
"I think this mission is very important," said the Amazon founder. I am honored to be able to make these contributions and am grateful for the financial position I can make.
The petition was filed a week before the regulator's State Accountability Office issued a resolution to formally protest NASA's award of the contract to SpaceX.
“All that NASA needs is to take advantage of this proposal and change the treaty,” Jeff Bezos said.
A NASA spokesperson said the agency was aware of Bezos' information. However, she declined to comment in order to protect the integrity of the ongoing process and the Government Accountability Office's decision on the matter.
The Amazon founder said in the letter that the $2 billion offer would fill the budget gap for the human communication system and put the plan back on track.
Amazon founder gives $2 billion
Blue Origin's protest against NASA's move ended SpaceX's $3 billion contract with NASA. The Government Accountability Office will determine the matter.
The deadline for a GAO decision is August 2. The resolution could recommend reintroduction of the rewards program by NASA, but it cannot enforce it and reverse its decision. Or reject Blue Origin's protest and take up NASA's current plan.
Since the protest, Blue Origin has devised a strategy to persuade NASA to review its decision on the manned landing system before the Government Accountability Office issues a decision.
The $2 billion rebate offer to Bezos is the company's latest attempt to give NASA a reason to go with the Blue Moon proposal. But this isn't Bezos' first personal introduction.
In 2019, the Amazon founder met the then-director of NASA and offered to pay 30% of the cost of the Blue Origin experimental lunar probe mission. That was about $200 million at the time.