It was the latest wave in space tourism, where more of the rich and famous than ever before – or lucky and well-connected – can enter the zero-gravity realm traditionally dominated by professional astronauts.
The New Shepard rocket blasted off on the quick up-and-down trip from West Texas. The fringes of space beckoned 107 kilometres up and provided a few precious minutes of weightlessness.
Sanchez, a helicopter pilot and former TV journalist, invited the others along for the 10-minute, fully automated flight, packing on the star power with singer-songwriter Perry and “CBS Mornings” co-host King.
Moved by the views of Earth below, Perry said she couldn’t resist singing “What a Wonderful World” in space.
Also sharing the ride were film producer Kerianne Flynn; Aisha Bowe, a former NASA engineer who started her own companies to promote science education; and Amanda Nguyen, a scientist who studied planets around other stars and now advocates for survivors of sexual violence.
Blue Origin declined to say how much the flight cost or who paid what. The trip came two months before Sanchez and Bezos marry in Venice.
It was the 11th human spaceflight for the Washington state-based company, founded by Bezos in 2000 after making a fortune with Amazon.
Bezos strapped in for Blue Origin’s first space tourist flight in 2021 and accompanied the latest crew to the pad.
The celebrity launch was the nation’s first spaceflight where women filled each seat.
The only other all-female crew in 64 years of human spaceflight was back in 1963 when Soviet astronaut Valentina Tereshkova launched by herself, becoming the first woman in space. Tereshkova spent three days off the planet.
Even after the latest launch, women represent barely 15 percent of the more than 700 people who have travelled into space. (AP)
