1 week Ago By Rishma Dosani
Katy Perry will be jetting to space in a matter of days (Picture: Getty / AP)In just a few days, Katy Perry will make history as the first popstar traveling to space, blasting off on an all-female flight.The Firework singer, 40, is among the six passengers on board Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin spacecraft, which is scheduled to take off on Monday, April 14.She was met with a wave of backlash when she announced her trip in February, and was forced to turn off her Instagram comments after fans voiced their displeasure.
The journey will mark the 31st trip in the New Shepard, with TV host and journalist Gayle King and the Amazon boss’ fiancée, Lauren Sanchez also nabbing a ticket.With the historic flight inching closer, here is everything you need to know.Who is on board the Blue Origin flight?{"@context":"https://schema.
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classList.add('metro-video-player--related-videos-loaded');});Musician Katy confirmed her seat on the rocket ship earlier this year, joining Gayle and Lauren – who brought the mission together.They will be in good company as fellow passenger Aisha Bowe was employed as an aerospace engineer by NASA, and serves as CEO of technology company, STEMBoard.
Civil rights activist and research scientist Amanda Nguyen also has a space background as she has previously worked on NASA space shuttle missions.Filmmaker Kerianne Flynn has long expressed her desire to explore space, and found it a no-brainer to accept the offer.Previous Blue Origin passengers have included Star Trek actor William Shatner and Good Morning America’s Michael Strahan.
Lauren Sanchez spearheaded the upcoming mission (Picture: NBC)Gayle King will also be blasting off (Picture: Getty)The journey will be the 31st flight in the New Shepard rocket ship, and the first to be solely made up of women since 1963, when Russian astronaut Valentina Tereshkova had a solo space flight.Speaking to Elle Magazine, Lauren revealed that she chose each of her fellow passengers because of how they were able to inspire others.‘All of these women are storytellers in their own right,’ she said.
‘They’re going to go up to space and be able to spread what they felt in different ways.’Detailing their intense preparation, Katy joked that her beauty regime was already in place.‘Space is going to finally be glam,’ she quipped.
‘Let me tell you something, if I could take glam up with me, I would do that. We are going to put the “ass” in astronaut.’When is the flight taking off and how long is it?The flight is taking off on Monday (Picture: Getty)Blue Origin bosses announced the date at the end of last month, giving us almost no time for the panic to set in.
The official Instagram account told fans: ‘Just over two weeks until the NS-31 crew embarks on the journey of a lifetime and experiences the Overview Effect firsthand.‘New Shepard’s crewed NS-31 mission is targeting liftoff from Launch Site One in the West Texas high desert on April 14 at 8:30 a.m.
Central (13:30 UTC).’The rocket reportedly flies itself and the trip is expected to last 11 minutes in total, which is less time than we’ve waited for an Uber..
.According to Elle Magazine, they will be able to float around the rocket and experience weightlessness, check out the incredible views for around four minutes before starting their return.{"@context":"https://schema.
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classList.add('metro-video-player--related-videos-loaded');});‘I called Katy,’ Gayle recalled to the outlet. ‘We had been on the phone for 36 minutes, and I’d asked her 50 million questions, until finally she said, “Could I just interrupt for a second? Are you aware that our flight is going to be shorter than this freaking phone call?”’How much is a ticket on Blue Origin?Blue Origin has never confirmed the price for passengers to board a rocket, with reported figures ranging wildly from $200,000 to more than $1million.
Potential passengers looking for the trip of a lifetime are currently required to submit a deposit of $150,000 for a seat.A form on the company’s website allows customers to reserve a seat, but warns that they will have to ‘acknowledge Blue Origin will collect a $150,000 USD fully refundable deposit to begin the order process.’What have fans said about the trip?Katy came under fire over announcing her trip (Picture: AFP)After Katy revealed her places for the space flight, fans were left furious over the decision, begging her to think again.
The mom-of-one was forced to disable her comments under the Instagram announcement, with many voicing their fury under other posts.Renée Duncan said at the time: ‘Read the room, Katy! First you endorse former GOP billionaire Rick Caruso for LA mayor, then you chose to work again with Dr. Luke, and now you’re partnering with oligarch Bezos to go to space.
’Kyle Iannuzzi agreed: ‘So disappointed to learn you’re going to help with Bezos’ marketing himself and his businesses on this space trip.‘Excited for you to have an opportunity to go to space, and with women, just feels counterintuitive to the whole idea of feminism in this concept given what Bezos stands for and is doing.’Why is Katy Perry going to space? ‘If you had told me that I would be part of the first ever all-female crew in space, I would have believed you,’ Katy said when the news was announced.
‘Nothing was beyond my imagination as a child. Although we didn’t grow up with much, I never stopped looking at the world with hopeful WONDER!‘I work hard to live my life that way still, and I am motivated more than ever to be an example for my daughter that women should take up space (pun intended).‘That’s why this opportunity is so incredible — so that I can show all of the youngest & most vulnerable among us to reach for the stars, literally and figuratively.
I am honored to be among this diverse group of celestial sisters.’ Olivia Munn also let rip on the crew before their voyage, during an appearance on Today with Jenna and Friends.‘I know this probably isn’t the cool thing to say, but there are so many other things that are so important in the world right now,’ she vowed.
‘What are you guys going to do up in space? What are you doing up there?’ she asked. ‘If you want to go to space, why do you need to tell us about it, you know? It’s just like, go up there, have a good time, come on down.’‘I know this is probably obnoxious, but like, it’s so much money to go to space, and there’s a lot of people who can’t even afford eggs,’ she added.
‘What’s the point? Is it historic that you guys are going on a ride?‘I think it’s a bit gluttonous.’Got a story?If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.
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