Space4 min(s) read
Published 13:21 20 Jul 2021 GMT
Jeff Bezos has flown to space!
Following hot on the heels of Richard Branson's space flight last weekend, the billionaire Amazon founder, 57, was joined by three others in the first crewed flight of his rocket ship, New Shepard.
The foursome have successfully landed back on Earth following their 10-minute-30-second-long trip.
After a slight delay, lift-off occurred at 09:12AM (ET).
Bezos' brother Mark, Wally Funk, an 82-year-old pioneer of the space race, and 18-year-old student Oliver Daemen were all aboard the rocket that left lift-off from West Texas.
"Congratulations to all of Team Blue past and present on reaching this historic moment in spaceflight history," Blue Origin wrote on Twitter.
"This first astronaut crew wrote themselves into the history books of space, opening the door through which many after will pass. #GradatimFerociter #NSFirstHumanFlight."
They traveled in a capsule with the biggest windows flown into space, and Blue Origin predicted stunning views of the Earth were seen by the foursome.
The capsule separated from its booster around 250,000ft up.
The rocket landed on its "legs" about 2 miles from the launch pad, while the capsule continued upwards to an altitude of around 350,000ft, per BBC.
"We're in zero-g for around four minutes, and we get to get out of our seats, unstrap, float around, look at the thin limb of the Earth's atmosphere," Bezos told CBS News.
"The views are going to be terrific, the zero-g will be an unusual experience that you really can't get in any good way on Earth."
After reaching its maximum altitude, the capsule will then begin its descent, parachuting down to a soft landing in the desert.
It comes as Bezos met with his Blue Origin crewmates 24 hours before their scheduled lift-off on July 19.
Bezos shared a number of images and videos of himself socializing with the crew on his official Instagram.
Uploading a picture of himself, his brother Mark, and his fellow passengers Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen, Bezos wrote to his 3 million followers on the platform:
"Had a great dinner with the crew last night. West Texas is beautiful!"
Bezos also shared a video of himself interacting with the crew, showing them training in preparation for their July 20 launch, and wrote: "We've been practicing full missions in New Shepard’s training simulator. Can't wait for liftoff."
Funk, aged 82, was one of the so-called 'Mercury 13', a group of women who received privately funded astronaut training in the 1960s, but who were ultimately prevented from ever doing into space.
She made aviation history by becoming the first female US military flight instructor and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transport Safety Board.
Meanwhile, Daemen joined the crew when the former winner of an auction for a place on the flight was forced to drop out due to prior commitments.
At 18 years old, he is the youngest person to ever travel into space.
Commenting on his cosmic initiative in an interview with CNN, Bezos stated: "We'll be building a road to space for the next generation to do amazing things and those amazing things will improve things here on earth."
He continued: "I could have done this flight as CEO of Amazon and it would have been fine. We really believe this flight is safe. I did have friends say: 'why not wait for the second or third flight, why do you have to go now?'
"But we know the vehicle is safe and if it's not safe for me then it's not safe for anyone. But we've taken this one step at a time, our mascot is the tortoise... we are ready."
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celebrity2 min(s) read
Published 13:02 07 Jun 2021 GMT
Jeff Bezos is going to fly into space on the first crewed flight of the New Shephard rocket.
Per CNN Business, the 57-year-old Amazon founder announced that he will be part of the crew of the maiden voyage of the spacecraft made by his company Bue Origin, along with his brother Mark Bezos.
The world's richest man is due to depart in the manned spaceflight on July 20th - a mere 15 days after he is due to resign as the CEO of Amazon.
Bezos announced that he will be joining the spaceflight in a post made on his official Instagram account on Monday, June 7.
In a caption addressed to his 2.8 million followers on the platform, the multi-billionaire wrote: "Ever since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space.
"On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend."
CNN reports that the upcoming space mission will see the company's six-seater capsule and 59-foot rocket fly to the very edge of space on an 11-minute-long flight reaching more than 60 miles above the planet Earth's surface.
However, the Amazon founder is also offering the chance for a member of the public to come along for the ride.
In May, Blue Origin announced that a ticket aboard will be given to the winner of a month-long auction for the single spare seat on the vessel.
Writing in another Instagram caption, Bezos stated: "On July 20th, #NewShepard will fly its first astronaut crew to space."
He continued: "We are offering one seat on this first flight to the winning bidder of @BlueOrigin’s online auction. Starting today, anyone can place an opening bid by going to BlueOrigin.com.
"The winning bid amount will be donated to Blue Origin’s foundation, @ClubforFuture, to inspire future generations to pursue careers in STEM and help invent the future of life in space. This seat will change how you see the world."
According to the above publication, the bidding has already reached $2.8 million at the time of writing.
In a 2018 interview with Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner, Bezos spoke about his abiding interest in space exploration, stating: "I've been studying it and thinking about it since I was a five-year-old boy.
"But that is not why I'm pursuing this work. I'm pursuing this work because I believe if we don't, we will eventually end up with a civilization of stasis, which I find very demoralizing."
space2 min(s) read
Published 11:58 21 Jul 2021 GMT
Jeff Bezos has returned successfully from his mission into space following Blue Origin's first manned flight.
Despite the large online petition launched with the aim of keeping him off the earth, the 57-year-old Amazon founder traveled to and came back from space on Tuesday, July 20. It was certainly history in the making.
Following in the footsteps of fellow billionaire Richard Branson, Bezos joined the crew of the new Blue Origin rocket, the so-called "New Shepard".
However, a number of social media users were more focused on the shape of Bezos' rocket than on the momentous occasion itself - labeling it phallic or unintentionally Freudian.
For example, one person stated: "Why is Jeff Bezos going into space in a giant dildo?"
Then this Twitter user wrote: "Wait did everyone else know Jeff Bezos' rocket ship looks like a giant penis?"
And another commenter compared it to a scene from the comedy movie Austin Powers, stating: "I'm not the only person thinking of Austin Powers right now?"
Finally, a fourth Twitter user added: "Is it just me or does Jeff Bezos's ship look like a massive dildo..."
The Blue Origin capsule carried by the rocket, containing the four-person crew, landed safely on the launch pad about ten minutes after its departure, per BBC News.
Bezos was joined on his mission by his brother, Mark Bezos, 82-year-old aviation expert Wally Funk, and 18-year-old student Oliver Daemen.
This 10-minute and 30-second-long trip took the foursome up to an altitude of around 350,000ft, before parachuting them down again to land safely in the desert of West Texas.
BBC News reports that a number of important artifacts in the history of aviation were brought along on the trip.
These included a piece of canvas used on the Wright brothers' first plane, a medallion created out of the vehicle that performed the first hot air balloon flight in 1783, as well a pair of goggles belonging to Amelia Earhart.
In a statement made at a press conference following the trip, Bezos stated: "I wanna thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all this."
space2 min(s) read
Published 13:44 19 Jul 2021 GMT
Jeff Bezos has met with Blue Origin's New Shepherd rocket crew the day before its launch into space.
Following hot on the heels of Richard Branson's space flight this weekend, the 57-year-old Amazon founder appeared in a series of interviews with his Blue Origin crewmates 24 hours before their scheduled lift-off from West Texas.
Bezos shared a number of images and videos of himself socializing with the crew on his official Instagram.
Uploading a picture of himself, his brother Mark Bezos, and his fellow passengers Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen, Bezos wrote to his 3 million followers on the platform:
"Had a great dinner with the crew last night. West Texas is beautiful!"
Bezos also shared a video of himself interacting with the crew, showing them training in preparation for their July 20 launch, and wrote: "We've been practicing full missions in New Shepard’s training simulator. Can't wait for liftoff."
Funk, aged 82, was one of the so-called 'Mercury 13', a group of women who received privately funded astronaut training in the 1960s, but who were ultimately prevented from ever doing into space.
She made aviation history by becoming the first female US military flight instructor and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transport Safety Board.
Meanwhile, Daemen joined the crew when the former winner of an auction for a place on the flight was forced to drop out due to prior commitments.
At 18 years old, this will make him the youngest person to ever travel into space.
Commenting on his cosmic initiative in an interview with CNN, Bezos stated: "We'll be building a road to space for the next generation to do amazing things and those amazing things will improve things here on earth."
He continued: "I could have done this flight as CEO of Amazon and it would have been fine. We really believe this flight is safe. I did have friends say: 'why not wait for the second or third flight, why do you have to go now?'
"But we know the vehicle is safe and if it's not safe for me then it's not safe for anyone. But we've taken this one step at a time, our mascot is the tortoise... we are ready."
space3 min(s) read
Published 16:21 06 Jul 2021 GMT
A petition calling for Jeff Bezos to be blocked from returning to Earth following his trip to space now boasts over 150,000 signatures.
The 57-year-old Amazon founder is set to join the crew of his Blue Origin rocket, the New Shepard, when it launches into sub-orbital space in a mission on July 20 - a mere 15 days after he steps down as CEO of Amazon.
Launched by a user named Ric G from Ferndale in Michigan, the description on the Change.org petition criticizes Bezos for exacerbating the wealth gap.
This description reads: "The recent billionaire space odyssey competition is a slap in the face to working-class folks struggling paycheck to paycheck just to survive.
"Society is tired of propping up these handfuls of 'good-natured' entrepreneurs; only to later see pennies of their accumulated stash returned as 'thanks' and 'charitable contributions'."
It continues: "Only billionaires and greedy corporations exist in the way of turning philanthropy into sound public policy. Poverty, hunger, homelessness, good health, and well-being are simply matters that could be resolved through robust policy and bold political will.
"Billionaires and corporations should pay their fair share. Until then, Jeff Bezos can stay in space until he finds which intergalactic asteroid core contains his compassion and humanity."
The world's richest man announced he would be part of the crew of the maiden voyage of the New Shepard, along with his brother Mark Bezos, in a post shared on his official Instagram account on Monday, June 7
In a caption addressed to his 2.8 million followers on the platform, the billionaire wrote: "Ever since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space.
"On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend."
CNN reports that the upcoming space mission will see the company's six-seater capsule and 59-foot rocket make an 11-minute-long flight more than 60 miles above the surface of the Earth.
In May, Blue Origin announced that a ticket aboard would be given to the winner of a month-long auction for a spare seat on the vessel.
Bezos stated in a separate Instagram post: "On July 20th, #NewShepard will fly its first astronaut crew to space."
He continued: "We are offering one seat on this first flight to the winning bidder of @BlueOrigin’s online auction. Starting today, anyone can place an opening bid by going to BlueOrigin.com.
"The winning bid amount will be donated to Blue Origin’s foundation, @ClubforFuture, to inspire future generations to pursue careers in STEM and help invent the future of life in space. This seat will change how you see the world."
After a 10-minute-long auction, the coveted ticket was eventually sold for the hefty price of $28 million.
celebrity3 min(s) read
Published 14:32 14 Jun 2021 GMT
A keen bidder has paid an eye-watering $28 million for a seat on the 11-minute flight to space that Jeff Bezos is set to board.
The space-enthusiast will join the Amazon founder and his brother aboard their Blue Origin spacecraft on July 20, The Guardian reports.
Bezos' company Blue Origin offered up the opportunity for one wealthy person to join the brothers on their space flight by putting a spare seat up for auction on Saturday, June 12.
As many as 7,600 people from 159 countries originally registered to bid, but the auction ultimately saw 20 active bidders who started the race at $4.8 million.
With the auction lasting just 10 minutes, the bids escalated in the final three minutes just moments before the winning bid of $28 million was placed.
The winner’s identity has not yet been announced, but the bidder is set to join the Bezos brothers on their once-in-a-lifetime trip.
The trip will mark the Blue Origin’s 16th flight into space, but the first carrying humans. After blasting off from Van Horn, Texas, the automated flight will last just 11 minutes.
The company has not yet revealed who will be joining Bezos, his brother and the successful bidder in the capsule, which will carry as many as six passengers.
Per the company’s terms, those onboard must be between 5ft and 6ft 4in tall and weigh 110-223lb.
Those looking to join Bezos in space must also be able to climb seven flights of stairs at the launch tower in less than 90 seconds and sit strapped in the vehicle for as long as 90 minutes without access to a toilet.
As well as all of those stipulations, they must also be able to withstand gravitational forces of as much as 5.5 times the person’s normal weight during descent, and three times the weight for as long as two minutes on the ascent, The Guardian reports.
Bezos last week announced his venture into space in a post on social media.
Per CNN Business, the 57-year-old Amazon founder announced that he will be part of the crew of the maiden voyage of the spacecraft made by his company Bue Origin, along with his brother Mark Bezos.
The world's richest man is due to depart in the manned spaceflight on July 20th - a mere 15 days after he is due to resign as the CEO of Amazon.
Bezos announced that he will be joining the spaceflight in a post made on his official Instagram account on Monday, June 7.
In a caption addressed to his 2.8 million followers on the platform, the multi-billionaire wrote: "Ever since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space.
"On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend."
CNN reports that the upcoming space mission will see the company's six-seater capsule and 59-foot rocket fly to the very edge of space on an 11-minute-long flight reaching more than 60 miles above the planet Earth's surface.
