Katy Perry and Gayle King are among the all-female crew for Blue Origin’s upcoming New Shepard mission, slated for spring without a specific date. The crew includes Aisha Bowe, a former NASA engineer; Amanda Nguyen, a bioastronautics researcher; Kerianne Flynn, a film producer; and Lauren Sánchez, Jeff Bezos’ fiancée and a helicopter pilot. The mission marks the 11th flight for passengers and the 31st overall for New Shepard, which reaches altitudes over 62 miles for about 10 minutes. Previous notable passengers include William Shatner and Michael Strahan, highlighting Blue Origin’s focus on celebrity involvement in space tourism.
Katy Perry, the renowned singer and songwriter, along with Gayle King, the respected broadcast journalist and show host, will form part of an all-female team on the upcoming mission of New Shepard, the space tourism rocket run by Jeff Bezos’ private firm, Blue Origin.
On Thursday, Blue Origin revealed the mission lineup, anticipating a spaceflight this spring, although the exact launch date has yet to be announced. The crew will also feature Aisha Bowe, a former NASA engineer; Amanda Nguyen, a research scientist; Kerianne Flynn, a film producer; and Lauren Sánchez, who is engaged to Mr. Bezos and works as a helicopter pilot.
The company has attracted attention for its missions by including well-known figures and marking new achievements in space exploration.
This spring’s launch will be the 11th flight with passengers and the 31st overall for New Shepard. The suborbital rocket commemorates Alan Shepard, the first American to journey into space in 1961 and a moonwalker.
Flights aboard the fully reusable vehicle last slightly over 10 minutes, reaching heights of more than 62 miles. In comparison, astronauts aboard the International Space Station orbit approximately 250 miles above Earth.
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and among the wealthiest individuals globally, was one of the first passengers aboard New Shepard in 2021, marking Blue Origin’s inaugural crewed flight.
Notable individuals who have previously crewed New Shepard include William Shatner, famed for his role as Captain Kirk in Star Trek, on a flight in 2021; Edward Dwight, who, at 90 years old, reached space in 2024, over 60 years after he was overlooked as the first Black astronaut; and Michael Strahan, co-host of “Good Morning America,” who participated in a mission in 2021.
The crew for the NS-31 mission includes:
Aisha Bowe is a former aerospace engineer at NASA Ames Research Center and currently the CEO of STEMBoard, an engineering company offering advisory services to U.S. government entities. With Bahamian roots, Ms. Bowe aims to inspire youth in the Bahamas and globally to chase their ambitions, as noted in a Blue Origin statement.
Amanda Nguyen is a bioastronautics researcher studying how to sustain life in space at institutions like M.I.T. and the Center for Astrophysics at Harvard and the Smithsonian. She contributed to the final NASA space shuttle mission, STS-135, in 2011, and the Kepler exoplanet mission. Nguyen is also the founder of Rise, a nonprofit organization advocating for survivors of sexual violence, for which she earned a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.
Gayle King is a journalist and co-host of “CBS Mornings,” as well as an editor at large for Oprah Daily (and known for her long-standing friendship with Oprah Winfrey), and the host of the call-in show “Gayle King in the House” on SiriusXM radio. According to Blue Origin, Ms. King embodies someone “open to new adventures, even those that may frighten her.”
Katy Perry is a leading figure in pop music as both a singer and songwriter. She founded the Firework Foundation, dedicated to empowering children in underserved communities through the arts. In 2013, she was designated as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador.
Kerianne Flynn is a producer known for films like “This Changes Everything” (2018), which delves into the history of women in Hollywood, and “Lilly” (2024), a tribute to fair-pay advocate Lilly Ledbetter. Ms. Flynn serves on the board of trustees at the Allen-Stevenson School in New York City and is part of the development committee for Hudson River Park.
Lauren Sánchez, a helicopter pilot, established Black Ops Aviation in 2016, a company specializing in aerial film and production. She received an Emmy Award for her contributions to a television news team. Additionally, she acts as vice chair of the Bezos Earth Fund, Mr. Bezos’ philanthropic initiative, and authored a children’s book titled “The Fly Who Flew to Space.” Ms. Sánchez, engaged to Mr. Bezos, “facilitated the gathering of the mission,” as highlighted in the Blue Origin statement, referring to the New Shepard crew.