Space adventure: Katy Perry and Bezos' fiancee start into space!

Space adventure: Katy Perry and Bezos' fiancee start into space!

On April 11, 2025, Blue Origin plans the "New Shepard Mission NS-31", which is due to start at 3:30 p.m. CET in Texas. The mission takes ten minutes and leads about 100 kilometers above the surface of the earth. Passengers can sometimes experience weightlessly when they were flight. The “New Shepard” missile system has been transporting paying space tourists for several years, and to date, ten flights have been carried out in a total of 52 people. Jeff Bezos himself took part in the first mission in 2021.

A prominent team of passengers is expected in the current mission, including Katy Perry and Gayle King. Other participants are Aisha Bowe, Amanda Nguyen and Kerianne Flynn. It is particularly worth mentioning that Lauren Sanchez, the fiancee of Jeff Bezos, is also on board. She plans a wedding with him in Venice, which also puts the event in the spotlight. This choice of fellow travelers shows that Blue Origin likes to attract artists and influencers to increase the public perception of the mission.

prices and critics of space tourism

Although Blue Origin does not publish official information about the ticket prices, experts appreciate them to several hundred thousand dollars per person. The company often uses flights for PR purposes by inviting celebrities what the critics called on the scene. Among other things, Olivia Munn expresses concerns about the costs of space touring in the context of global challenges. Scientists also warn of the environmental impacts associated with rocket starts.

critical voices emphasize that space tourism has its price. Blue Origin has emphasized that her “New Shepard” rocket does not emit a CO2, but only uses hydrogen and oxygen as fuels. Nevertheless, the environmental balance of rocket starts is complex. Liquid fuels are more environmentally friendly than kerosene, but their production also produces CO2 emissions. The CO2 footprints of a rocket start contain many factors that are currently not fully quantified.

environmental aspects and future challenges

The discussion about the environmental friendliness of space tourism is reinforced by the fact that rocket starts can also have negative effects on the ozone layer. Nitrogen oxides from rocket fuels contribute to air pollution, and it is estimated that a single space tourist emits about 75 tons of CO2 on a flight. For comparison, the annual per capita emission in Germany is around 10 tons.

Although rocket starts are currently only a small share of global CO2 emissions-about 22,000 tons annually-the emissions due to these activities increase by 5.6 percent annually. Future plans for the space industry, including Virgin Galactic's destination of 400 starts per year, raise questions about the sustainability of space tourism. The lack of international regulations reinforces these concerns and lets experts speculate about future environmental impacts.

summarized, the current mission of Blue Origin not only focuses on the fascination of space tourism, but also raises important questions about its costs and environmental impact. The public discussion is likely to be further fueled by the prominent crew and the associated PR strategies by Blue Origin.

For more information about the mission and the challenges of space tourism, please look at ard alpha .