On April 13, Singer Katy Perry joined an all-women crew for a historic space flight managed by Blue Origin. Along with other crew members including Aisha Bowe, Amanda Nguyen, Gayle King, Kerianne Flynn, and Lauren Sánchez, Perry flew to space to promote the growing space tourism industry.
In her final message before launch, Perry shared her excitement with fans on Instagram, “Hi guys, it’s one hour and five minutes until we launch. We are the Taking Up Space crew, there’s six of us – all women. It’s a historical flight to space because it’s the first time all women have been in space. I’m so excited for this launch and I have never felt this much love. I feel like the message I’m getting today is, ‘You never know the amount of love you have inside of you until the day you launch.’ And I’m feeling that love and I’m sending you love. Please come check it out on BlueOrigin.com/live.”
Perry also promised a special announcement, “Watch us go up, watch us land safely and for my Katy cats I have a special reveal coming to you from zero gravity,”which teasingly sparked the excitement among the fans.
The flight will last around 11 minutes and will travel 62 miles past the Karman Line which is the boundary of space. The journey is part of a broader effort to increase the presence of women in space, as they currently represent just 11% of the total space travelers.
Perry has previously stated while speaking an Associated Press, that she hopes to inspire young girls, encouraging them to dream big and aim for the stars, saying, “I want to inspire young girls to go, ‘I’ll go to space in the future.’”
This flight is fully automated with no pilot inside, and the crew will experience weightlessness moments before returning to Earth.
