On Monday, April 14, an all-female crew, including pop star Katy Perry, traveled to space. The flight lasted approximately 11 minutes and passed the Kármán line, a boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and space, which is about 62 miles above sea level, according to Blue Origin. Blue Origin is an American space technology company founded by Jeff Bezos.
On the rocket were only six women with many different backgrounds. Katy Perry joined the flight along with Lauren Sanchez, who is Jeff Bezos’ fiancée. Sanchez is a journalist and a licensed helicopter pilot. Another journalist Gayle King was included in the crew, along with bioastronautics research scientist and civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen. The final crew members were Kelianne Flynn, a filmmaker, and Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist.
Once landing back on Earth, both Perry and King kissed the ground, thankful to be back. The space trip has received criticism due to its length and crew members, with some saying it is out of touch with current events. Many Americans are struggling to afford food and rent, and these women paid life-changing amounts of money to go to space for 11 minutes. While the price for this flight was undisclosed, Blue Origin auctioned a seat on its first crewed flight for $28 million. Many are concerned with carbon emissions, with others calling this flight “not feminism, but consumer capitalism.”
Despite controversy, the women continue to speak positively about their trip to space, and Blue Origin celebrated the successful completion of the journey.
