Amazon founder Jeff Bezos will try to make history this morning, shortly after 9am ET. Just over a week after fellow billionaire Richard Branson flew to the edge of space, Bezos will attempt a similar trip. And what makes his journey different than Branson’s? An un-piloted sub-orbital flight with an all-civilian crew.
Bezos’ New Shepard rocket is set to blast off from a Blue Origin site in the West Texas desert. Bezos and his crew of three will be taking part in the first manned launch for his private space company.
Aside from Bezos' brother, Mark, taking the ride...the former Amazon honcho’s crew is also offering some history-makers. At the tender age of 18, Oliver Daemen could become the youngest astronaut. At 82 years young, former test pilot Wally Funk,would be the oldest astronaut. For those who don’t know, Ms. Funk was one of the Mercury 13 women. They all underwent training in the 1960s to demonstrate that women could meet NASA’s standards for its astronaut corps, they completed training – but the program was scrapped. Godspeed to them all.
Source: NBC News