On Monday in Van Horn, Texas, Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket launched a history-making crew of six women to the edge of space. The suborbital mission marked the first all-female spaceflight in more than 60 years, and the 11th crewed launch for the aerospace company founded by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos.
The flight lasted just over 10 minutes, reaching more than 62 miles above the Earth’s surface before the capsule parachuted safely back to the West Texas desert. Though brief, the mission carried major symbolic weight. Of the more than 700 people who’ve flown to space, only about 15 percent have been women.
“I’ve performed all over the world—but this might be the first time I’ve truly left it.” said Katy Perry.
Onboard the rocket was pop icon Katy Perry, journalist Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, and Lauren Sánchez, who organized the flight and is engaged to Bezos himself.
“Each of these women is a storyteller who will use their voices, individually and together,” said Phil Joyce, the senior vice president of New Shepard. “To channel their life-changing experience today into creating lasting impact that will inspire people across our planet for generations.”
