Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sends 80‑year‑old Indian businessman and others into space
Blue Origin
has successfully sent an 80-year-old Indian businessman, Arvinder 'Arvi' Singh Bahal, into space as part of its latest mission.
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The seasoned world traveller was among a crew of six passengers who embarked on a recent 10-minute journey into outer space. The mission, designated NS-34, was the 34th flight for the
New Shepard
program. The rocket launched from a private site in West Texas. Joining Bahal on the
space tourism
flight was
cryptocurrency billionaire
Justin Sun, who had reportedly paid $28 million for his seat back in 2021. Bahal and Sun were also joined by Turkish entrepreneur and photographer Gökhan Erdem; Puerto Rican journalist and meteorologist Deborah Martorell; British national Lionel Pitchford, who has operated an orphanage in Nepal for over 30 years; and American businessman James (JD) Russell.
What Blue Origin said about its latest flight
In a post-flight statement shared on the company's blog post, Phil Joyce, senior VP of Blue Origin's New Shepard, said:
'It was an honour to see so many nations represented on our flight today. The view of our fragile planet from space has a unifying effect on all who witness it, and I am always eager to see how our astronauts use this experience for the benefit of Earth.'
NS-34 marked the 14th crewed mission of Blue Origin's New Shepard, a suborbital spaceflight system featuring a reusable rocket and capsule.
After launch, the rocket returns to Earth for a vertical landing, similar to how Elon Musk-owned SpaceX's Falcon 9 touches down. Meanwhile, the capsule descends gently using parachutes.
Each flight lasts around 10 to 12 minutes, during which passengers cross the Kármán line, which is 100 kilometres above sea level and the widely accepted boundary of space. This brief journey allows for a few minutes of weightlessness.
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Ticket pricing for these flights remains undisclosed, so it's unclear how much passengers typically pay. However, it is believed to be significantly less than what crypto billionaire Sun paid in 2021.
According to Blue Origin, that payment was made as a philanthropic donation. New Shepard continues to offer short yet impactful space experiences for civilian astronauts eager to witness Earth from the edge of space.
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