Jeff Bezos says he will fly into space next month
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has revealed on Instagram that he plans to fly on Blue Origin's first human spaceflight next month.
"I want to go on this flight because it's a thing I've wanted to do all my life," Bezos, the richest person in the world, said in a post published Monday morning. "It's an adventure. It's a big deal for me."
Bezos said he invited his younger brother, Mark, whom he described as his best friend, to go along. The two brothers will join the winner of an auction for a third seat on the flight, which is set to take place on July 20 of this year. Bidding for this seat is already at $2.8 million but is likely to go higher during a live auction on July 12. Proceeds from this auction will be donated to Blue Origin's foundation, Club for the Future.
[...] Now, Bezos may not be bringing his mom on the first human flight of the vehicle—but he will be bringing a family member. This speaks to the company's, and his, confidence in the safety of New Shepard. After this mission, Blue Origin is expected to begin flying other passengers on future flights later this year. The company has not yet set a public price for tickets inside the capsule, which can carry as many as six people.
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Sold! Bidder pays $28m for spare seat on space flight with Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin has sold the spare seat of the company's 20 July New Shepard space rocket blast-off for $28m, the company announced on Saturday.
With 20 active bidders starting at $4.8m during the 10-minute auction, bids escalated in the final three minutes of the sale. Initially, some 7,600 people registered to bid from 159 countries, the company said. The winner, whose identity has not been announced, will join the Amazon founder Bezos and his brother Mark on the flight.
The 11-minute, automated flight – the company's 16th but first carrying humans – will lift off from Van Horn, Texas. The capsule will carry as many as six passengers, though the company has not yet revealed who else will be onboard.
[...] The company has said the auction price will be donated to Blue Origin's foundation, Club for the Future, whose stated mission "is to inspire future generations to pursue careers in Stem (science, technology, engineering, and math) and to help invent the future of life in space".
Previously: Jeff Bezos' Vision for Space: One Trillion Population in the Solar System
Jeff Bezos Will Fly on Blue Origin's First Human Spaceflight
Related: Branson May Make a Last-Ditch Effort to Beat Bezos Into Space
Blue Origin flight: Wally Funk, 82, to join Jeff Bezos space flight
An 82-year-old woman who has spent six decades trying to reach space will join Jeff Bezos on the first human flight by his space company later this month. Wally Funk, who underwent training in the 1960s, will become the oldest person to ever fly to space. Mr Bezos has invited Ms Funk as an "honoured guest" and shared video on Instagram of him telling her the news. She will join the Amazon founder, his brother Mark and a mystery person who paid $28m (£20m) at auction for a seat.
[...] Funk volunteered in 1961 for the Women in Space programme where she underwent rigorous physical and mental testing in the hope of becoming an astronaut. But the scheme was later abruptly cancelled and she and the other women - collectively known as the Mercury 13 - never made it to space with Nasa.
Game on—Sir Richard Branson will attempt to go to space on July 11
On Thursday afternoon, Virgin Galactic said its founder, British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, will attempt to go to space on July 11.
Dubbed the "Unity 22" mission, this flight on the VSS Unity spacecraft will carry a full crew of two pilots, Dave Mackay and Michael Masucci, and four mission specialists, including Branson. "Building on the success of the company's most recent spaceflight in May, Unity 22 will focus on cabin and customer experience objectives," the company said in a statement.
The timing of this flight is significant, because a July 11 mission would allow Branson to beat Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to space. Bezos has said he will fly on the first human flight of the New Shepard spacecraft, developed and tested by his Blue Origin rocket company. That mission is set for July 20.
Thursday had been a great day for Bezos and Blue Origin, as the company received plaudits from across the space industry for inviting Wally Funk to join Bezos on the New Shepard flight. Funk, 82, was member of the privately funded "Mercury 13" program for women who ultimately were not selected to go into space in the 1960s. She is seen as someone who really, really deserves to go to space.
But Virgin Galactic's announcement will upstage this moment for Bezos, as it furthers the "battle of the billionaires" to see who will go into space first.
Previously: Jeff Bezos Will Fly on Blue Origin's First Human Spaceflight
Branson May Make a Last-Ditch Effort to Beat Bezos Into Space
Blue Origin Auctions New Shepard Seat for $28 Million
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @09:21PM (1 child)
Where is the GoFundMe for DJT in the third seat?
(Score: 5, Touché) by Tork on Monday June 07 2021, @10:43PM
🏳️🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️🌈
(Score: 3, Troll) by Gaaark on Monday June 07 2021, @09:25PM (4 children)
So...bringing his brother and, maybe, a couple of girlfriends too? Hookers? Something with not a penis?
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @10:16PM (1 child)
Alexa has no p***s, so maybe he can take a crateload of those away with himself...
(Score: 3, Funny) by Gaaark on Monday June 07 2021, @10:43PM
"Alexa, make my ex-wife jealous!"
"Sure: Wikipedia says you're a dick... she doesn't have one."
"Thanks....errrrr..........................what?"
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by Frosty Piss on Monday June 07 2021, @10:49PM (1 child)
He can bring his girlfriend, and in 9 months give birth to the first human conceived in space… if the Russians have not already secretly done so.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @04:48AM
I would fall over and die from not surprised if a child or two has already been conceived on the ISS during the last twenty years or so.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @09:31PM (2 children)
Taxes are too high on Earth, this has been his escape plan for years. We should make him leave a deposit.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @09:54PM (1 child)
Is he taking money with him? Wouldn't his cash exceed the vehicle carrying capacity?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @12:06AM
I bet Bozo isn't paying $2.8 million, he gets free shipping.
(Score: 2) by Beryllium Sphere (r) on Monday June 07 2021, @09:34PM
I'd take a small ham radio transceiver and make contacts as a "space station".
There would be only a very window for talking to people but it could be advertised in advance.
Assuming of course safety rules allow for a transmitter, which doesn't seem super likely.
(Score: 3, Funny) by DECbot on Monday June 07 2021, @09:46PM (4 children)
How is Bezos not a Bond villain at this point? He owns a major news outlet (The Washington Post), the largest online market place (amazon.com), a network of in-home spy devices (Amazon Echo/Ring), a good deal of 'the cloud' (Amazon AWS), and even builds his own rockets (Blue Origin). Check the casinos and cabanas, Bond and MI6 appear to be MIA!
Of course it could be like documented on Spitting Image where Bezos, Musk, and Branson all end up living in a penis shaped inflatable habitat on Mars.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @11:08PM (2 children)
He acts as probably the largest middleman to transfer American wealth to Jews and Chinese. If it were up to him, there would be no such thing as small businesses or domestic manufacturing, it would be all warehouses staffed with illiterate illegal Mexicans and managed by Jews, peddling only cheap Chinese crap while having his other Jews running his propaganda outlets convincing you that it's all for your own good and anybody who disagrees is racist or fascist.
And because he's such a nice guy, he's even offering employees their own crying booths -- with time spent inside deducted from workers' paychecks, of course. He got that idea from a Jew.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @11:11PM (1 child)
Now I don't suggest trying this at home, but I have heard that for someone like yourself smashing yourself in the face with a hammer drastically improves your chances of sexual coupling.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @11:29PM
Terroristic incitement to violence! Quick, somebody alert the ADL and the FBI! They'll have their biggest and best noses sniffing in on the case in no time, after they're done counting and laundering all the Bitcoin money they "rescued" from evil Russian Hackers!
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Tuesday June 08 2021, @03:11PM
What makes you so sure that he's not?
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday June 07 2021, @09:51PM (5 children)
Does he mean on Blue Origin's New Shepard -- (If I understand correctly) -- a suborbital joyride for rich people? (Please correct me if I'm wrong.)
He wants to be the first one? Isn't Bezos forgetting about the part where you let someone else less rich and more expendable go first in case something goes wrong?
That's not "going into space". That's tip-toeing into the big vast ocean before running back to mommy.
Bezos, how about:
* you get something into orbit?
* you get at least one fright certified BE-4 engine for ULA? [youtube.com]
What happens when ULA can't deliver on its contracts with the military because it doesn't have any fright certified BE-4 engines from Blue Origin? Why did ULA get the large share of that money and SpaceX got the small share of that money because the military thought ULA was a less risky bet?
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Monday June 07 2021, @10:29PM (1 child)
Who's more expendable than Bezos?
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 3, Touché) by Gaaark on Monday June 07 2021, @10:46PM
An Alexa enabled dildo?
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @12:23AM
If Bezos really wanted to get to space he could buy a ride from SpaceX
(Score: 3, Funny) by coolgopher on Tuesday June 08 2021, @01:50AM
He doesn't have to. Everything already revolves around him.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @04:56AM
SpaceX gets less money because they are consistently the lowest bidder, despite often doing most of the work. The most frustrating part is that their bargain basement bids are still 50% profit. That is how bad Oldspace has been ripping people off for at least the last forty years.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @10:18PM (1 child)
Racists.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @11:43PM
Because White Lives Matter, you insensitive clod.
(Score: 1) by crunchy_one on Tuesday June 08 2021, @12:04AM (1 child)
"Spam in a can"
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @02:26AM
...now available with free next-day shipping!
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Subsentient on Tuesday June 08 2021, @01:12PM (1 child)
An oligarch launching into orbit on his own dangerous, potentially experimental spacecraft. Ooh boy.
Let's hope he doesn't come back, for the good of everyone.
"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." -Jiddu Krishnamurti
(Score: 2) by corey on Tuesday June 08 2021, @11:10PM
Considering how most people generally despise him, it would be good for him to help that image by offering a free ride for someone who is sidelined or marginalised, or someone disabled, someone who has done a lot of good work for humanity (no, Amazon doesn’t fit that), or someone who has volunteered all their life. Just an idea.