Billionaire Jeff Bezos completes trip to space via Blue Origin
Billionaire and currently the world's richest person, Jeff Bezos, has officially ticked off one item on his bucket list on Tuesday, July 20, and that is to fly to space.
The Amazon founder achieved his dream of going to space while aboard their very own Blue Origin New Shepard rocket.
Blue Origin is an aerospace manufacturer and sub-orbital spaceflight services company that was also founded by Jeff Bezos.
Aside from being the first space flight of Bezos, the said space trip was also historic for another reason: Bezos was accompanied by both the oldest and the youngest persons to ever fly in space.
The famous billionaire flew to space with 82-year-old aviation pioneer Wally Funk (oldest person to fly in space) and 18-year-old Dutch student Oliver Daemen (youngest person to fly in space).
Plus, Jeff's brother Mark, whom he calls his best friend and huge contributor, was also with him during his dream spaceflight.
The Blue Origin New Shepard rocket lifted off from its launch site in West Texas at 9:12 a.m. EDT.
After a little over two minutes, at an altitude of around 45 miles, the booster's company designed BE-3 main engine shut off and the crew capsule dubbed “First Step” was released to fly on its own.
The capsule reportedly reached a maximum altitude of 66.5 miles, which is more than four miles above the internationally recognized “boundary” between space and the Earth's atmosphere of 62-mile-high.
Bezos and his crewmates got to enjoy about three minutes of weightlessness in space.
While in zero gravity, Bezos and his flight mates unstrapped and floated around the cabin as they soaked in the breathtaking view from space through the largest windows ever installed in a spacecraft.
They also made the most of their experience of being weightless by doing somersaults, throwing ping pong balls back and forth and tossing Skittles and catching them with their mouths.
As their 10-minute spaceflight was coming to an end, they were instructed to strap themselves back to their seats and prepare for landing.
The reusable New Shepard rocket then descended back to Earth on its own, tail first.
At around 2,700 feet altitude, three large parachutes opened to slow down the descent to about 16 mph.
And at about just six feet from the ground, nitrogen-powered thrusters set off to slow down the capsule further to just 1 mph as it touched down on the landing pad.
Oliver Daemen, Jeff Bezos, Wally Funk and Mark Bezos / Source: @jeffbezos (IG)
An elated Jeff Bezos then shared his unforgettable experience with the media after landing.
"Oh my God! My expectations were high, and they were drastically exceeded.
“The zero G (gravity) piece may have been one of the biggest surprises because it felt so normal, it felt almost like humans evolved to be in that environment. ... It's a very pleasurable experience."
He also went on to confirm what astronauts have always said about realizing the Earth's fragility once you see it from space.
"Every astronaut, everybody who's been up into space, they say this, that it changes them, and they look at it and they're kind of amazed and awestruck by the Earth and its beauty, but also by its fragility. And I can vouch for that.
"It's one thing to recognize that intellectually, it's another thing to actually see with your own eyes how fragile it really is. And that was amazing."
On July 11, fellow billionaire Richard Branson also flew to space aboard his Virgin Galactic spaceplane.
Branson went well above the 50-mile altitude recognized by NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration as the point where wings and rudders become useless.
However, Branson's achieved altitude was about 10 miles lower than that of Bezos.
You can watch highlights of Jeff Bezos and crew mates' historic spaceflight below.
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