A group of women that includes singer Katy Perry and broadcast journalist Gayle King are now the latest civilians to have boarded a commercial spacecraft for a quick trip beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
The star-studded Monday morning voyage to the edge of space took place from Blue Origin’s private launch facility in west Texas. Perry and King, who co-hosts “CBS Mornings,” were among six women selected for the short flight operated by billionaire Jeff Bezos’ private space company. Also on the crew was civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, filmmaker Kerianne Flynn and Lauren Sánchez, an Emmy Award-winning journalist who is also Bezos’ fiancée.
Now that the vehicle has launched and landed, the group of six women are officially the first all-female crew to travel to space since 1963, Blue Origin has said. The women are also now among 52 others who have previously boarded Blue Origin’s New Shepard launch vehicle to head more than 60 miles high for a few minutes of weightlessness and spectacular views of Earth.
Monday morning’s spaceflight was the New Shepard’s 31st overall launch, including the 11th with humans on board.
The New Shepard, composed of both a rocket and crew capsule, has been making human spaceflights since July 2021, when Bezos himself boarded the spacecraft as part of its maiden crew
But no pilots or trained active government astronauts are ever on board the spacecraft. Instead, the vehicle flies itself autonomously with up to six passengers, some of whom have been notable celebrities like actor William Shatner and NFL legend Michael Strahan.
Rewatch the launch and spaceflight at the webcast at the top of the story.
Who were the celebrities heading to space on Blue Origin’s New Shepard?
Six women were selected to be part of the next Blue Origin commercial spaceflight, a mission known as NS-31.
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Here’s a look:
- Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist, CEO of engineering firm STEMBoard and founder of LINGO, which teaches students technology skills.
- Amanda Nguyen, a prominent civil rights activist and bioastronautics research scientist who worked on the last NASA space shuttle mission, STS-135, and the U.S. space agency’s exoplanet-hunting Kepler space telescope.
- Gayle King, a journalist and television personality best known as a co-host of “CBS Mornings.”
- Katy Perry, a pop music artist and former host of “American Idol.”
- Kerianne Flynn, a film producer known for her contributions to “This Changes Everything,” a 2018 documentary about sexism in Hollywood.
- Lauren Sánchez, an Emmy Award-winning journalist who is the fiancée of Bezos.
When was the Blue Origin launch from Texas?
New Shepard got off the ground right on schedule at 9:30 a.m. ET Monday, according to Blue Origin.
Like all of Blue Origin launches, the vehicle lifted off at Launch Site One, a private ranch in rural West Texas more than 140 miles east of El Paso.
How to watch Gayle King, Katy Perry go on all-female spaceflight
Blue Origin provided a livestream of the takeoff beginning prior to the launch window opening on its website.
CBS also provided coverage of the launch on its network and through its streaming service Paramount+. Coverage begins at 7 a.m. EDT during “CBS Mornings” and continues at 9 a.m. with a special segment, “Gayle goes to Space.”
What happens during a Blue Origin spaceflight?
The brief voyage takes civilian passengers on a trip above the Kármán Line – the 62-mile-high internationally recognized boundary of space – where they can experience a few minutes of weightlessness.
Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket, named after astronaut Alan Shepard, the first American in space, also comes with a crew capsule outfitted with large windows for them to enjoy the stunning view of Earth.
The launch vehicle is designed to be fully reusable, with a capsule that returns to Earth via three parachutes. The rocket itself is powered by one BE-3PM engine, which propels it to suborbit before restarting to slow the booster to just 6 mph for a controlled landing back on the launch pad.
Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]
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