We sat down with Bandwidth Blog editor in chief Theunis J v Rensburg to chat about his favourite moment in tech this year; the dawn of the new space race.
Theunis J v Rensburg: “It might seem like a strange choice for my best moment in tech this year, but I think its repercussions will be felt for decades.
We have known about Elon Musk’s SpaceX ambitions for quite some time and over the last 18 months they had a couple of failed attempts to launch the world’s first reusable rockets. These would take off, deliver a payload to space (e.g. parts for the International Space Station), and return the rocket safely to the ground to be used again at a later stage.
With most of the media attention went to SpaceX, another company quietly went about their business in the background. In November 2015, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin made the first real breakthrough with it’s New Shepherd space vehicle. While it was a major achievement, this rocket is very different to that of SpaceX and a lot smaller.
Finally, in December 2015, SpaceX launched and recovered their vehicle fully (see video here). Both these companies are ushering in a new era in science and space exploration.“
Keen to hear more of the Bandwidth Blog team’s favourite Moments in Tech? Be sure to check out all their thoughts here, and follow Theunis J v Rensburg for more of his opinions in the technology world!
Follow Theunis on Twitter: @Theunis_BWB
