Star Trek actor William Shatner has become the oldest person to reach space, calling his trip "the most profound experience". The 90-year-old blasted off from Texas just after 10:50 AM EST time on a Blue Origin rocket - the space company owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Shatner, who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek series, spent several minutes in a suborbital flight alongside three others, <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-58885555" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BBC News</a> reports. After touching down, the actor placed his hands on Bezos's shoulders and told him "what you have given me is the most profound experience... I'm so filled with emotion". [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/BBCWorld/status/1448311843068448772]]  "Everybody in the world needs to do this," the Canadian actor told Bezos after landing back on Earth. "It was unbelievable." In tears, he added: "What you have given me is the most profound experience. I'm so filled with emotion about what just happened. I hope I never recover from this. I hope I can retain what I feel now. I don't want to lose it." Before the launch, he admitted he was a "little frightened". The others on the flight were NASA engineer Chris Boshuizen, clinical research entrepreneur Glen de Vries and Blue Origin vice president and engineer Audrey Powers. <img class=" wp-image-1263129507" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/10/2H06CB4-1024x819.jpg" alt="" width="579" height="463" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: UPI / Alamy]] Blue Origin's rocket system is called New Shepard, named after the Mercury astronaut Alan Shepard who was the first American to go into space. This was only the second crewed outing for New Shepard. The first, on 20 July, carried Bezos, his brother Mark, Dutch teen Oliver Daemen, and famed aviator Wally Funk. Afterward, Funk, being 82, was able to claim the record for the oldest person in space - a title she has now relinquished to Shatner. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/BBCWorld/status/1448309408329523204]]  [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/blueorigin/status/1448306436937764864]]  The launch comes amid claims that Blue Origin has a toxic work culture and failed to adhere to proper safety protocols. The mostly anonymous accusations made by former and present employees have been strenuously denied. "That just hasn't been my experience at Blue," countered Audrey Powers, who is responsible for mission and flight operations. "We're exceedingly thorough, from the earliest days up through now as we've started our human flights. Safety has always been our top priority." <h6>Featured image credit: Blue Origin / Alamy</h6>

Star Trek's William Shatner, 90, becomes oldest person to reach space as he travels with Blue Origin

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