Blue Origin sends crypto magnate Justin Sun, alongside five others, into near-space (video evidence)
In a thrilling suborbital journey, crypto billionaire Justin Sun soared into the cosmos on Blue Origin's New Shepard NS-34 mission. The flight, which took off from Blue Origin's West Texas launch site at 8:43 a.m. EDT (1243 GMT; 7:43 a.m. local time in West Texas) on August 3, marked the 34th overall flight of the New Shepard vehicle and the 14th human flight to date [1][2].
Sun, who won an auction for a seat aboard the first-ever crewed flight of New Shepard, paid $28 million for his seat. This amount was a philanthropic contribution, with the proceeds benefitting 19 space-focused charities [3][4]. Despite missing the historic first crewed flight on July 20, 2021, which included Jeff Bezos, his brother Mark, aviation pioneer Wally Funk, and Dutch student Oliver Daemen, Sun finally had his chance to experience weightlessness and marvel at the Earth from the heavens [5].
Joining Sun on the NS-34 mission were an eclectic group of individuals. Englishman Lionel Pitchford, who has run an orphanage in Nepal for three decades, was also on board. Arvinder (Arvi) Singh Bahal, an Indian-born American real estate investor and adventurer, was among the passengers. Deborah Martorell, a journalist and meteorologist from Puerto Rico, and Turkish businessman and photographer Gökhan Erdem were also part of the crew [1][6].
The reusable New Shepard vehicle, consisting of a rocket and crew capsule, performed a vertical, powered touchdown, similar to SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets. The capsule landed softly under parachutes, marking the safe return of the passengers [2][7].
Blue Origin has yet to reveal its standard ticket prices for New Shepard flights, but they are significantly lower than the $28 million Sun paid. The exact figures remain undisclosed, leaving the door open for more individuals to experience the wonders of space tourism [3][5].
As for Sun, he is already looking forward to his next space adventure with Blue Origin. He will fly on their next tourism launch, continuing his journey into the cosmos and inspiring others to dream beyond the stars.
[1] https://www.blueorigin.com/news/ns-34-crew [2] https://www.space.com/blue-origin-new-shepard-ns-34-mission-launch-august-2021 [3] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/03/justin-sun-to-fly-to-space-on-blue-origin-new-shepard-ns-34-mission-in-august.html [4] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-03/justin-sun-to-fly-to-space-on-blue-origin-s-ns-34-mission-in-august [5] https://www.cnet.com/tech/space/justin-sun-to-fly-to-space-on-blue-origin-new-shepard-ns-34-mission-in-august/ [6] This story was updated to include a postflight quote from Phil Joyce. [7] https://www.blueorigin.com/news/ns-34-landing
- Crypto billionaire Justin Sun's interest in science and technology led him to a career in business, which allowed him to seize a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to venture into space-and-astronomy.
- After his successful suborbital journey with Blue Origin's New Shepard NS-34 mission, Justin Sun expressed his desire to continue his technological explorations and inspire others in the arena of real estate and news.
- Arvinder (Arvi) Singh Bahal, an Indian-born American real estate investor and adventurer, joined Justin Sun and other passengers on Blue Origin's NS-34 mission, further blurring the lines between the realms of science, business, and space-and-astronomy.
- As Blue Origin continues to lower the costs for space tourism, technology is poised to facilitate more individuals embarking on their own cosmic endeavors, fueling the fires of wonder in the science and business communities alike.
){kind=link}