Blue Origin launch recap: Jeff Bezos soars to the edge of space in historic flight
Jeff Bezos and three others are launched to the edge of space on Tuesday.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos blasted to the edge of space and spent a few minutes outside Earth's atmosphere Tuesday on the first crewed flight from his firm Blue Origin.
An elated Bezos could be heard calling it "the best day ever" after landing back on Earth.
The milestone launch in the modern commercial space race comes on the 52nd anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's moon landing in 1969, though the space-faring landscape has evolved by giant leaps since then as billionaires emerge as key players driving the new race to the cosmos.
Bezos, who holds the title of the richest man in the world per Bloomberg data, has said the spaceflight will fulfill a lifelong dream and he is also curious how it will "change" him.
Here is how the launch unfolded.
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The hatch has been closed
The hatch for the New Shepard capsule has officially been closed, and the final checks are now underway ahead of the launch.
The Bezos brothers were seen waving and smiling through the windows of the capsule.
Crew is buckling in their seats
The crew are now getting in their seats on the capsule and buckling-in ahead of the closing of the hatch. A communications check with each astronaut has also commenced.
Led by Wally Funk, astronauts climb the crew tower
The astronauts, led by 82-year-old Funk, were seen climbing the tower and preparing to ingress the New Shepard capsule.
The crew arrived atop at the so-called astronaut safety shelter, with approximately 30 minutes to go before launch.
Crew is en route to the launchpad
The four soon-to-be astronauts were spotted emerging from the astronaut training center around 8:15 a.m. ET and entering vehicles that will take them to the launchpad.
The Bezos brothers, Wally Funk and Oliver Daemon were greeted with cheers from Blue Origin staff as they cruised past mission control on the way to the launchpad. The launch remains on schedule for a 9 a.m. liftoff.
Meet the history-making crew
The Amazon founder will be accompanied on the historic journey by his brother, Mark Bezos, as well as the oldest and youngest people ever to go to space, Wally Funk, 82-years-old, and Oliver Daemon, 18.
Funk is a trailblazing female pilot who trained to be an astronaut with the so-called “Mercury 13” program during the original U.S.-Soviet space race era but was then told they were only sending men to space at the time. Funk still blazed trails for women in aerospace, becoming the first female Federal Aviation Administration inspector.
Daemon is a Dutch student set to begin classes at Utrecht University this fall, and is the first paying customer for Blue Origin after the initial auction winner backed out. Daemon graduated high school in 2020, and has said he hopes his trip inspires other young people. Blue Origin said the anonymous bidder who paid $28 million won't make it on Tuesday due to "scheduling conflicts." The company has not disclosed how much Daemon paid for his seat.