Today, Lauren Sanchez, Katy Perry and an all-female crew will soar into space aboard Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin spaceship.
During their 11-minute flight, the New Shepard capsule will reach an altitude of 62 miles (100km) and cross the Karman Line, often used as the boundary of space.
As the capsule enters freefall, the crew will be treated to three to four minutes of weightlessness as they leave their seats to take in the magnificent view.
However, they won’t have long to enjoy it, as the capsule will start its return to Earth after just minutes in space before deploying its parachutes and landing safely.
The NS-31 mission is scheduled to launch from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One, about 30 miles north of Van Horn, Texas, at 14:30 BST (08:30 local time).
Their journey will be powered by a reusable rocket which will push the capsule into space before detaching and gently guiding itself back to Earth.
The six-person crew includes Jeff Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sánchez, pop star Katy Perry, CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, activist Amanda Nguyen, and former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe.
Here’s how their flight to space will play out minute-by-minute.
The six-person crew includes Jeff Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sánchez, pop star Katy Perry, CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, activist Amanda Nguyen, and former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe
Katy Perry has said the all-female space mission was ‘putting the “ass” in astronaut’ as she prepared to embark on the flight
00:00 – Liftoff
Currently, Blue Origin is targeting to launch at 14:30 BST (08:30 local time) but this is subject to flexibility.
If there are concerns about the weather or minor technical issues the launch could be delayed by up to an hour.
When the launch does finally come, the rocket’s single BE-3PM engine will fire and begin blasting the crew into space.
Burning a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, the engine generates around 50,000 kg of force while producing nothing but water vapour.
Within minutes, the rocket will hit speeds exceeding 2,000 miles per hour (3,200 kmph) – over twice the speed of sound.
The forces on both the capsule and the crew will be intense as the rocket hits its point of maximum stress, known as Max-Q in aerospace engineering.
According to Blue Origin, Katy Perry and her fellow astronauts will experience three times the force of gravity as the booster accelerates.
The NS-31 mission will launch from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One, about 30 miles north of Van Horn, Texas, at 14:30 BST (09:30 local time). Taking the six-person all-female crew on an 11-minute trip to space. Pictured: A Blue Origin New Shepard rocket
Lauren Sánchez, an experienced helipcopter pilot, will be mission leader for flight. However, the vehicle is entirely automatic and Ms Sánchez will have no control over the capsule at any point
02:40 – Booster separation
Just over two minutes later, the engine will have burned almost all of its fuel and will detach from the capsule.
While the capsule is no longer being pushed upwards it will have enough momentum to keep travelling upwards for another few minutes.
At this point, the crew will first begin to experience weightlessness.
However, this isn’t because they are outside the Earth’s gravitational pull but rather because they have now entered free-fall.
Even though they are still rising, without the upwards thrust of the engine the capsule and everything inside it is now starting to fall towards Earth at the same speed.
This is similar to the stomach-lurching feeling you get going over the peak of a big rollercoaster.
As that occurs, the crew will get a brief taste of the microgravity felt by astronauts orbiting Earth aboard the International Space Station.
Two minutes and 40 seconds after launch, the booster will separate from the New Shepard crew capsule (pictured)
The crew will also inlcude Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist turned entrepeneur
According to Blue Origin, the crew can expect to experience weightlessness for between three to four minutes before the capsule starts falling towards Earth.
03:30 – Entering space
The New Shepard capsule will reach a maximum altitude of 62 to 66 miles (100-107 km).
That will take it just above the Karman line – a boundary that is often used to denote the edge of space.
Based on Blue Origin’s previous flight records, NS-31 should pass the Karman line about three and a half minutes after launch, officially entering space.
Blue Origin claims that this will be the first time an all-female crew makes the journey into space, but that claim is somewhat controversial.
Notably, it ignores the fact that Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, flew a solo mission to orbit in 1963.
Additionally, the use of the Karman line as the boundary of space is not without its critics.
Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, says that this will be the first all female crew to enter space. However, this is not strictly true as Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, flew a solo mission to orbit in 1963
This line denotes the point at which craft can no longer rely on the lift from the atmosphere to fly and start needing to rely on rocket systems.
However, this line is about 40 miles (64km) lower than the lowest orbiting satellite and about 190 miles (305km) beneath the orbit of the International Space Station.
On the other hand, this is still higher than the 50-mile (80km) mark used by the US government to define space which is used by rival space firm Virgin Galactic.
07:30 – Booster returns to Earth
While Lauren Sánchez and the rest of the passengers aboard the New Shepard are enjoying the views, the booster will have been making its way back to Earth.
After detaching from the capsule, the booster section of the New Shepard rocket will immediately start falling to the ground.
Using drag brakes, the booster reduces its speed by half and corrects its alignment before firing using the last of the remaining fuel.
During the final stages of descent, the New Shepard will move at just 6 miles per hour (9.7 kmph), allowing it to make a gentle touchdown.
While the crew is enjoying the views, the booster section will return to Earth and slow its descent for a safe landing. The booster will touch down on a landing pad seven minutes and 30 seconds after launch. Pictured: A New Shepard Booster touches down during the NS-28 mission
After completing the journey into space, the capsule will start to fall, deploying three parachutes to slow its descent. Pictured: New Shepard mission NS-24 returns to Earth
Just 10 to 11 minutes after launch, the New Shepard Crew capsule will make a safe landing within a few miles of the launch site. Pictured: New Shepard crew capsule from mission NS-18 after landing
Around seven minutes after launch, the booster will make a vertical landing at a specialised landing pad about two miles (3.2km) north of the launch site.
Just like the SpaceX Falcon-9, this allows Blue Origin to reuse its rockets multiple times and massively reduce the cost of spaceflight.
Each BE-3PM can be used four times before it needs to be replaced while the New Shepard rocket itself can be launched up to 25 times after refurbishment.
11:00 – Touchdown
After a few minutes of weightlessness, the New Shepard capsule will begin its return journey to Earth.
The crew will buckle back into their seats as the capsule begins to fall, and the pull of gravity returns.
The crew capsule will slow its descent using three separate parachutes, bringing it down for a soft landing.
Finally, the capsule will touch down back on Earth, just 10 to 11 minutes after it launched.
