Not just Katy Perry: Here are the celebrities Blue Origin has launched to space

a man wearing a cowboy hat and a blue flight suit celebrates with a bottle of champagne in front of a white space capsule in a desert landscape

Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos celebrates after participating in the company's first crewed spaceflight, on July 20, 2021. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

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Jeff Bezos and Wally Funk
William Shatner
Michael Strahan
Coby Cotton
Ed Dwight
Emily Calandrelli

In this era of commercial space travel, Blue Origin has become a major player in turning the dream of spaceflight into reality for people with the means — including some celebrities.

Case in point: Pop star Katy Perry and journalist Gayle King are part of Blue Origin's upcoming all-female spaceflight, which is set to launch on Monday (April 14). That mission, known as NS-31, also includes Aisha Bowe, Kerianne Flynn, Amanda Nguyen and Lauren Sánchez (the partner of Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos), all of them notable figures in their own right.

Here's a look at the other well-known people that Blue Origin has launched to suborbital space aboard its New Shepard suborbital vehicle, on brief missions that have all added to the evolving nature of space tourism.

Jeff Bezos and Wally Funk

The crewmembers of Blue Origin’s first-ever human spaceflight celebrate after its touchdown on July 20, 2021.From left to right: Oliver Daemen, Jeff Bezos, Mark Bezos and Wally Funk. — (Image credit: Blue Origin)

It all began with Blue Origin's inaugural human spaceflight on July 20, 2021. Bezos himself took a seat on New Shepard's NS-16 mission, fulfilling a lifelong dream and marking the dawn of his company's space tourism era.

Joining him on that historic flight was female aviation pioneer Wally Funk, whose journey was decades in the making after being denied the opportunity to go to space in the 1960s. (Bezos' brother Jeff and Dutch student Oliver Daemen were the other crewmates on NS-16.)

William Shatner

three men and one woman, all wearing blue flightsuits, hold hands while riding in a space capsule with earth visible through windows in the background — The crewmembers of Blue Origin’s NS-18 mission during flight on Oct. 13, 2021.From left to right: Glen de Vries, Audrey Powers, William Shatner and Chris Boshuizen. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

At 90 years old, legendary "Star Trek" actor William Shatner became the oldest person to fly to space aboard NS-18 on Oct. 13, 2021, wresting the title from the 82-year-old Funk. The flight was a full-circle moment, as the man who famously portrayed Captain Kirk finally experienced space for real. Upon his return, Shatner shared an emotional reflection on Earth's fragility.

Michael Strahan

a man in a blue jumpsuit descends from a ramp extending from a white space capsule in the desert — Former NFL star Michael Strahan (left) greets Jeff Bezos after flying on Blue Origin's NS-19 suborbital mission on Dec. 11, 2021. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

Television personality and former NFL star Michael Strahan was a member of Blue Origin's first six-person crew (NS-19), which flew to space on Dec. 11, 2021. Strahan played for the New York Giants from 1993 to 2007 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014, the same year he joined "Good Morning America" as a co-host.

Strahan brought a football with him on NS-19 that was later put in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Coby Cotton

two men in blue flight suits float inside a space capsule with earth visible through windows in the background — Coby Cotton of Dude Perfect (right) floats in space on Blue Origin's NS-22 flight on Aug. 4, 2022. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

YouTube star Coby Cotton of Dude Perfect fame took his trick-shot skills to a whole new altitude aboard NS-22 on Aug. 4, 2022. His flight marked a new era for influencer involvement in space travel, engaging a younger audience with the possibilities of space.

Ed Dwight

an elderly man in a blue flight suit walks down a ramp from a white space capsule in the desert — Ed Dwight celebrates after the touchdown of Blue Origin's NS-25 suborbital mission on May 19, 2024. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

More than six decades after initially being selected as the United States' first Black astronaut candidate (via a U.S. Air Force training program, which didn't turn into a NASA post), 90-year-old Ed Dwight joined the crew of NS-25, which launched on May 19, 2024. Dwight, a former U.S. Air Force captain, subsequently became a sculptor well known for his contributions to art and history.

Emily Calandrelli

a woman in a blue flight suit exults next to a white space capsule in a desert landscape — Emily Calandrelli exults after the touchdown of Blue Origin's NS-28 mission on Nov. 22, 2024 (Image credit: Blue Origin)

A longtime advocate for science communication and space education, Emily Calandrelli — host of the TV series "Emily's Wonder Lab" and a former MIT engineer — flew on NS-28 on Nov. 22, 2024, becoming the 100th woman to fly to space.

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Samantha Mathewson joined Space.com as an intern in the summer of 2016. She received a B.A. in Journalism and Environmental Science at the University of New Haven, in Connecticut. Previously, her work has been published in Nature World News. When not writing or reading about science, Samantha enjoys traveling to new places and taking photos! You can follow her on Twitter @Sam_Ashley13.

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