New York Giants football legend and the beloved host of Good Morning America, Michael Strahan, talked about his journey to the edge of space with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. Strahan was among those wearing the astronaut suit on his third crewed mission using aerospace company Blue Origin’s sub-orbital New Shepard rocket. He describes this brief visit to the rest of the universe as “a special journey” and “almost like an out-of-body experience.”
Blue Origin has successfully completed its 3rd journey!
Blue Origin continues to gain experience in short-term space visits. The company was able to complete its third journey without any problems. This situation will be pleasing not only to investors but also to Bezos, saying that some of the trips to be made in the near future can be made to the moon by going out of the atmosphere.
Laura Shepard Churchley and Michael Strahan
In addition to Michael Strahan, 5 other passengers in the capsule also had the chance to visit space. One of them was Laura Shepard Churchley, the eldest daughter of Alan Shepard, the first American to fly into space, for whom Blue Origin’s rocket is named. The other four are space industry executive and philanthropist Dylan Taylor, investor Evan Dick, and Lane Bess, founder of Bess Ventures, and his son, Cameron.
The 10 minute trip went exactly according to plan without any problems. The rocket took off from Blue Origin’s West Texas launch site on Saturday morning. It landed again before landing above the Karman line 62 miles (100 km) above the planet, which is thought to mark the beginning of space.
When New Shepard successfully reorientated itself to Earth for a steep descent, the six passengers in the capsule were able to hover for a few minutes weightlessly above the planet, like astronauts aboard the International Space Station. They then soon returned to their places for the parachute journey home.
Speaking shortly after returning to Earth, Strahan, the group’s best-known passenger, said it was hard to believe the journey had even taken place. He shared that it was a “crazy feeling” to leap off the launch pad and then glide through the capsule.
In post-flight posts, Blue Origin CEO Bob Smith said that they will not only offer seats to high-paying passengers. He noted that the company is moving towards the launch of a full-fledged space tourism service, making it a “great year” for Blue Origin.
Virgin Galactic, founded by billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson, aims to launch a similar service. While such tourism services open up the experience of space travel to more people than ever before, critics argue that rocket travel serves little purpose and could even affect global warming by pumping more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere if popularized.
What do you think about this subject? Don’t forget to share your views with us in the comments!
16904
