Jeff Bezos’ space venture, Blue Origin on Wednesday, announced the ‘take off’ date of the first space trip after decades. The ‘New Shepard’, named in honour of American astronaut Alan Shepard, will carry a crew of astronauts above the Kármán Line on the 20th of July.
“Only 569 people have ever been over the Kármán Line. With our New Shepard vehicle, we’re about to change that and change it dramatically,” said Ariane Cornell, Blue Origin’s Director of astronaut sales.
While the crew is likely to include company personnel, it is unclear whether Bezos himself will be on the flight. Blue Origin tweeted that they will also be having an online auction for one coveted seat on the flight.
The auction is open for anyone and none of the bids will be made visible until May 19th. This will conclude on June 12th with a live online auction, and the seat will be going to the highest bidder.
The company said that the funds raised from the auction will be donated to “inspire future generations to pursue careers in STEM and help invent the future of life in space”, via Blue Origin’s ‘Club for the Future’ foundation.
Space
