Suborbital flight, which the 6 new Blue Origin astronauts lived during these 3 -minute minutes
The NS-33 crew with left to right: Leland Larson, Owolabi Salis, Freddie Rescigno, Jr., Jim Sitkin, Carl Kuehner and Allie Kuehner © Blue Origin
Yesterday, on June 29, Blue Origin introduced the land seen from space to 6 new people, after the postponement of June 21 and 22 due to too violent winds. Blue Origin thus allowed a 750e Homo sapiens to become astronaut. The crew crossed the 100 km of the Karman line, a zone which delimits the atmosphere of the space.
The New Glenn rocket took off at 2:39 pm GMT (9:39 am in local time), taking for the second time a married couple in space: Allie and Karl Kuehner, the latter having become the 70th astronaut of Blue Origin.
Will the “Solstice 33” crew be controversial?
The NS-33 team also called “Solstice 33”. © Blue Origin
They had been nicknamed Solstice 33 because the Inital takeoff was scheduled for June 21, 2025, but the weather conditions pushed their ascent to space at 29.
One of the members has a remarkable particularity: in addition to a former director of bus company, entrepreneur, prosecutor, retirement lawyer and a property developer, we find Allie Kuehner, wife of the latter. It is presented by the Blue Origin site as an environmentalist passionate about the protection of animal ecosystems.
We cannot help but wonder how this information will be perceived by the many detractors of habid commercial space flights, which could be described as flights of pleasure.
The New Shepard did the job perfectly. © Blue Origin
Indeed, even if in terms of quantity, greenhouse gases (to take only this example) emitted during a space flight remain much lower than those of commercial aviation, the impact by passenger is gigantic. It is compared to the impact on the atmosphere of an average European over a year.
In addition, because of the attitudes reached – between 70 and 100 km – the gases such as the water vapors and the soot are released so high that they can remain in suspension for about three years in the high atmosphere.
Their contribution to global warming is quantitatively low, but has very remarkable and symbolically very strong.
Ten minutes of great thrill and three minutes for the unimaginable!
Astronaut Jim Sitkin during the climax of flight NS-33. © Blue Origin
The big thrill is the increase in body weight during acceleration, always very impressive even when prepared: gravity is multiplied about 3 in takeoff and a little more in landing.
But the essential comes after. When the six passengers faced and amazed for 3 minutes at the curvature of the earth. It is probably one of the most powerful visions that nature can offer us: see the land of “outside”, detached, or caught up in the unfathomable black of the universe …
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