July 20, 2021
Today saw the first flight by Blue Origin New Shepard rocket fulfill its promise by finally launching with passengers onboard.
The booster rocket and capsule brought Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, his brother Mark, 82-year-old US aviator Wally Funk, and Dutch high schooler Oliver Daemen to the edge of space, putting a personal stamp of approval on the safety and reliability of the 60-meter booster rocket and capsule combo. The experience lasted just 10 minutes and 22 seconds, with the capsule reaching a peak altitude of 66 miles (107 km).
Now that Bezos has gone up, when will you be able to log on to Blue Origin’s website and buy your ticket at a set price? Not anytime soon, according to company executives at the launch. Thanks to a month-long auction that attracted 7,500 participants volunteering their own bids to fly, Blue isn’t feeling any pressure to start selling regular tickets. But you can email them, and if you’re serious, they’ll add you to the list.