Pop star Katy Perry will fly to space this spring as part of a six-member, all-female crew with Blue Origin, the company announced Thursday. Following the call of her hit “E.T.,” she’s embarking on a star-studded journey.
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Celebrity Companions
Perry will make the trip alongside journalist Lauren Sanchez, fiancée of Blue Origin owner Jeff Bezos, and CBS Mornings host Gayle King. The crew also includes research scientist Amanda Nguyen, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, and film producer Kerianne Flynn.
Blue Origin’s Space Tourism
Blue Origin began flying wealthy tourists and celebrities to space in 2021 using its New Shepard rocket, named after Alan Shepard, the first American in space. To date, the company has flown 52 people on 10 crewed missions to suborbital space. New Shepard missions launch from the company’s Launch Site One in West Texas.
Brief Trip with Weightlessness
Flights typically last only 10 to 11 minutes from launch to landing, with passengers experiencing a few minutes of weightlessness as their capsule flies beyond the Karman line – the internationally recognized boundary of space at 62 miles (100 kilometers) above sea level. The rocket booster lands upright and vertically, while the capsule deploys parachutes for a gentle landing in the Texas desert.
First All-Female Crew Since 1963
This mission will be the first all-female space crew since Valentina Tereshkova’s historic solo flight in 1963. Ticket prices remain undisclosed, though celebrities often receive complimentary seats. Previous New Shepard passengers have included Star Trek legend William Shatner and Bezos himself, who flew on the first crewed flight.
Jeff Bezos shares an unwavering passion for space with Elon Musk – the only person wealthier than him. While Musk dreams of colonizing Mars, Bezos envisions moving heavy industry from Earth to floating space platforms to preserve Earth, humanity’s “blue origin.” In January, the company successfully launched its massive New Glenn rocket for the first time – a crucial step for expansion into the lucrative commercial launch sector. Blue Origin already holds a NASA contract to build a lunar lander for one of the upcoming Artemis missions that will return Americans to the Moon.
The mission unites science, celebrity, and the pursuit of the stars. How do you view the role of space tourism and its potential impact on the future of space exploration? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Based on content from www.phys.org and own research.