reporter: geoff, there really is nothing like it, on both sides here. we were in the city of van horn for the last launch in late july. this time we were just a few miles away from where that rocket rose from the west texas desert. there were two holds that took place but it did take off on a blue sky sunshine day. by all accounts from everyone who witnessed the moment, it was a seamless mission from start to finish. i can tell you that as the rocket comes up, you can see it in the sky before you really hear it, and then feel it. and that is something that just creates goosebumps, this anticipation and the realization that four people on board that little glimmer in the sky are leaving this earth, if just for a moment, experiencing that weightlessness, looking down on the planet and coming back down, in what was a smooth affair just like the last time. to see captain kirk himself,
and this now makes the 18th successful manned flight. after we watched that rocket liftoff from the west texas desert back in july, and you have to think how much more frequently is this going to start to happen now they re seeing consistent success here and not just in the test action mode but with actual crew members here. and you saw the reaction from william shatner after he walked outside the capsule. and what was so striking to me prior to this, he said he looked forward to looking outside the window and being entranced in the blue orb that is earth. but to see the raw emotion on the other side of this trip face-to-face with jeff bezos saying he wanted to grab ahold of it and hold onto it as long as he could, it was very evident to see just the impact it had on him. and i think it really does capture part of the motivation at least what jeff bezos is trying to do here and that is increase the frequency of these
of the window, and you ve got six of them in here, right yes over a third of the surface area of the capsule are windows. reporter: perfect for the views shatner has been dreaming of. i m going to see the vastness of space and the extraordinary miracle of our earth. reporter: but his ultimate goal the thing i really want to do is come back down. reporter: and beaming back to earth is out of the question tom costello, nbc news in the west texas desert. up next, we will tell you whose pockets the pandemic hit hardest and what to do if covid set you back financially.
reporter: yasmin, good morning. a lot of anticipation here in van horn, texas, in the west texas desert. and all systems are a go, according to blue origin. the big question they re waiting on right now is the weather. we know they had to push this back by a day, because winds hit about 75 miles an hour earlier. and that s what caused them to err on the side of caution out here. they want to make sure this is a seamless flight, just like the one back in late july that took up jeff bezos and that s why right now, we know those four astronauts at their astronaut village outside of the launch site, we know that tomorrow at 8:30 local time, they ll go up, have that 11-minute flight, experience about three minutes of weightlessness before coming back down to earth. and you have william shatner about to be the oldest person ever in space. he took that role of captain kirk three years before we even put a man on the moon. an incredible journey for him. ask about what he s most looking forwa
oldest person ever to reach space after 82-year-old in july. now shatner and his team are preparing for their 11-minute round trip. you are all buckled in and ready to go to space. the same simulator we were in last summer. what stands out to me is the size of the window and you ve got six of them in here. yes. over a third of surface area are windows. perfect for the view shatner has been dreaming of. i m going to see the vastness of space and the extraordinary miracle of our earth. but his ultimate goal the thing i really want to do is come back down. reporter: and beaming back to earth is out of the question. tom costello, nbc news in the west texas desert. coming up, can they hear you now? a big phone and internet provider is scrambling to keep its customers during an