Blue Origin successfully launched its first all-female crew into space on Monday morning, marking a historic milestone for the aerospace company and women’s participation in spaceflight. The NS-31 mission lifted off from Launch Site One near Van Horn, Texas, around 8:30 a.m. CDT.

The flight included pop icon Katy Perry, who had expressed her long-standing desire to travel to space. “I’ve dreamt of going to space for 15 years and tomorrow that dream becomes a reality,” Perry had posted on social media a day before the launch.

She was joined by a high-profile team of women:

  • Lauren Sanchez, a helicopter pilot and journalist who is also the fiancée of Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos
  • Gayle King, acclaimed journalist and co-host of CBS Mornings
  • Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist
  • Amanda Nguyen, a civil rights activist and bioastronautics researcher
  • Kerianne Flynn, a filmmaker with an interest in space and science communication

The mission lasted approximately 11 minutes and reached an altitude of about 60 miles, just below the Kármán line (62 miles), which defines the boundary of outer space. Though the crew did not enter orbit, they experienced a brief moment of weightlessness before descending back to Earth.

This suborbital flight is a significant milestone for Blue Origin as it mirrors a historic moment in space history — the last all-female spaceflight being Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova’s solo mission in 1963.

With this achievement, Blue Origin adds a new chapter to the narrative of space travel, highlighting diversity, inclusion, and the celebration of women in science, technology, and beyond.

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