Why Oprah, the Kardashians, and More Celebs Were at the Blue Origin Space Launch
Gayle King, Katy Perry, and Lauren Sánchez have returned to Earth after an 11-minute space flight aboard Blue Origin's New Shepherd launch vehicle.
The three women were part of a six-woman space crew on April 14, which also included former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, bioastronautics research scientist Amanda Nguyen, and film producer Kerianne Flynn. According to Blue Origin—founded by Jeff Bezos, who is engaged to Sánchez—this marks the first all-female space crew in more than 60 years.
King's longtime best friend Oprah Winfrey traveled to west Texas to watch her BFF skyrocket into space, and said, per USA Today, 'I've never been more proud of my friend than today.' Winfrey wore a bright yellow sweater to the 8:30 a.m. CST launch, paying homage to King's call sign—'Sunshine.'
'This is bigger than just going to space,' Winfrey said of King, who has a fear of flying. 'This is overcoming a wall of fear. I think it's going to be cathartic.'
King has said that Winfrey encouraged her to take part in the NS-31 mission, with Winfrey telling King how much she might regret it if she didn't.
'You should always know that no dream is too big,' King said ahead of the flight.
Joining Winfrey to watch the launch was the mother-daughter duo of Kris Jenner and Khloe Kardashian, who just celebrated her daughter True's seventh birthday over the weekend. 'It's really something,' Jenner said, adding that daughter Kim Kardashian was supposed to join as well, but was studying for a law school exam.
'It's a brave thing to do,' Jenner added of the Blue Origin flight.
'Really, whatever you dream of, it is in our reach,' Kardashian added. 'Dream big, wish for the stars, and one day you can maybe be amongst them.'
Ahead of the launch, Perry said to her family, 'I love them so much. And I am so grateful to be representing a fearless female in my family, which is a domino effect from my mom, from my sister, and definitely something I feel from my daughter,' referring to 4-year-old Daisy, whom she shares with Orlando Bloom.
'It is very normal for us to talk about mommy going to space now, and I will be so excited to hold her when I land,' Perry added, per CNN. She brought a daisy flower with her into space 'to remind us that the Earth is very precious,' she added.
Earlier this month, Perry told Elle that 'Space is going to finally be glam,' adding, 'Let me tell you something. If I could take glam up with me, I would do that.'
'We're going to have lash extensions flying in the capsule!' Sánchez joked.
Of taking on the mission, King said, 'There was something about being part of the first female team to me. The group of women that they put together is so extraordinary to me that I thought, 'Wow. Why would I not want to be a part of that?''
'I'm looking forward to just floating in space and just seeing what that feels like, and what that looks like,' she continued.
As part of the mission, the six-member crew voyaged above the Kármán Line, the 62-mile-high internationally recognized boundary of space.
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