A New Shepard rocket launches on a test flight.
Blue Origin
Jeff Bezos’ space venture Blue Origin will launch its first astronaut crew to space on July 20, flying on its space tourism rocket called New Shepard, the company announced Wednesday.
The company has yet to open ticket sales or release pricing information about New Shepard flights, but will host a public auction for a seat on the first crewed launch.
A sealed online auction will run until May 19 and bids can go up to $50,000 – with the company requiring additional identification information and a $10,000 deposit for higher bids. Then, from May 19 onwards, Blue Origin will hold a public bidding process – before a final live online auction on June 12.
“We’re auctioning off the first seat to benefit our foundation Club for the Future,” a Blue Origin video said.
New Shepard is designed to carry as many as six people at a time on a ride past the edge of space, with the capsules on previous test flights reaching an altitude of more than 340,000 feet (or more than 100 km). The capsule has massive windows to give passengers a view, spending a few minutes in zero gravity before returning to Earth.
A seat and the view from inside a New Shepard capsule at the edge of space.
Blue Origin
Jeff Bezos takes a look at the New Shepard rocket booster on the landing pad after a successful NS-15 flight and landing in April 2021.
Blue Origin
The rocket launches vertically, with the booster detaching and returning to land at a concrete pad nearby. The capsule’s return is slowed by a set of parachutes, before softly landing in the desert.
The New Shepard crew capsule lands in the West Texas desert after the NS-15 mission on April 14, 2021.
Blue Origin
Blue Origin’s announcement comes on the 60th anniversary of the Mercury-Redstone 3 flight, which carried astronaut Alan Shepard – after whom Blue Origin named its rocket system – on the first U.S. human spaceflight in 1961.
Additionally, July 20th will mark the 52nd anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landings.
Become a smarter investor with CNBC Pro.
Get stock picks, analyst calls, exclusive interviews and access to CNBC TV.
Sign up to start a free trial today.
