Katy Perry flies by cloud nine in Blue Origin space mission
By Rome Tews - Voice Editor on March 7, 2025
Graphic by Audrey Garcia
Science is ever evolving, and the next greatest achievement was finally blasting Katy Perry off this planet.
Although her ascent will only be momentary, the singer-songwriter will experience 11 minutes in outer space as part of aerospace company Blue Origin’s next New Shepard mission.
In a historic first, Perry will be a part of an all-woman crew. She’ll also be the first female singer in space, which is an exciting achievement and incredible PR move.
The “Firework” and “California Gurls” superstar has been in remission since the mid-2010s, and this space mission brought Perry’s name back to the headlines. It’s tough to stay relevant in an era of pop powerhouses such as Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter, but is an interstellar adventure the best way to go about it?
After generations of women in space not getting the recognition they deserve, it’s undeniably amazing that she’s a part of the first woman-led mission. But there’s just so much wrong with sending civilians like Perry into the atmosphere.
New Shepard missions are flown entirely automatically, meaning there is no need for professional astronauts or other trained personnel to be on board.
Fortunately, Perry’s mission includes aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, but there’s no guarantee she’s trained to respond to an emergency. Again, the flight is short, so the margin for error is slim, but we’re not at a point with space travel where no risk is involved.
Sending a popstar like Perry or a journalist such as Gayle King into orbit is fun but entirely unnecessary. It’s not only dangerous for them but also harmful to our environment.
Rocket launches, like all things, have a very small individual impact. However, with the continued uptick in space tourism through companies like Blue Origin, the repercussions become more apparent.
Let’s just say Perry is going to need to buy her carbon footprint some bigger shoes.
Aside from all the soot, carbon, vaporized metals and potentially radioactive components that are launched into both the air here on Earth and several upper layers of the atmosphere, frequent space missions also physically pollute orbit.
The more rockets launched into the atmosphere, the more space debris accumulates, which is not only harmful, but also potentially dangerous for future missions.
At the speed things are flying out there, a simple nut can rip a hole through a spacecraft, potentially undermining important satellites or other equipment.
Civilian space travel is tantalizing food for thought, but just know no one like you or me will see the curve of the Earth in our lifetime. These missions are purely playthings for the ultra-rich, created by the ultra-rich.
Oh yeah, Jeff Bezos owns Blue Origin, by the way.
People with more money than God aren’t thinking about the negative impacts of their lifestyles; they want something and take it. Time and time again, it has been shown that the richest people have the most negative impact on our world, but that’s just because they’re busy looking at other ones.
Perry’s addition to the New Shepard crew just reinforces those statistics. She wants to be different, not by being philanthropic or creative, but by blasting off into space. Good for her, maybe one day she’ll be sent off forever to live on the moon.
Katy Perry flies by cloud nine in Blue Origin space mission
Science is ever evolving, and the next greatest achievement was finally blasting Katy Perry off this planet.
Although her ascent will only be momentary, the singer-songwriter will experience 11 minutes in outer space as part of aerospace company Blue Origin’s next New Shepard mission.
In a historic first, Perry will be a part of an all-woman crew. She’ll also be the first female singer in space, which is an exciting achievement and incredible PR move.
The “Firework” and “California Gurls” superstar has been in remission since the mid-2010s, and this space mission brought Perry’s name back to the headlines. It’s tough to stay relevant in an era of pop powerhouses such as Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter, but is an interstellar adventure the best way to go about it?
After generations of women in space not getting the recognition they deserve, it’s undeniably amazing that she’s a part of the first woman-led mission. But there’s just so much wrong with sending civilians like Perry into the atmosphere.
New Shepard missions are flown entirely automatically, meaning there is no need for professional astronauts or other trained personnel to be on board.
Fortunately, Perry’s mission includes aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, but there’s no guarantee she’s trained to respond to an emergency. Again, the flight is short, so the margin for error is slim, but we’re not at a point with space travel where no risk is involved.
Sending a popstar like Perry or a journalist such as Gayle King into orbit is fun but entirely unnecessary. It’s not only dangerous for them but also harmful to our environment.
Rocket launches, like all things, have a very small individual impact. However, with the continued uptick in space tourism through companies like Blue Origin, the repercussions become more apparent.
Let’s just say Perry is going to need to buy her carbon footprint some bigger shoes.
Aside from all the soot, carbon, vaporized metals and potentially radioactive components that are launched into both the air here on Earth and several upper layers of the atmosphere, frequent space missions also physically pollute orbit.
The more rockets launched into the atmosphere, the more space debris accumulates, which is not only harmful, but also potentially dangerous for future missions.
At the speed things are flying out there, a simple nut can rip a hole through a spacecraft, potentially undermining important satellites or other equipment.
Civilian space travel is tantalizing food for thought, but just know no one like you or me will see the curve of the Earth in our lifetime. These missions are purely playthings for the ultra-rich, created by the ultra-rich.
Oh yeah, Jeff Bezos owns Blue Origin, by the way.
People with more money than God aren’t thinking about the negative impacts of their lifestyles; they want something and take it. Time and time again, it has been shown that the richest people have the most negative impact on our world, but that’s just because they’re busy looking at other ones.
Perry’s addition to the New Shepard crew just reinforces those statistics. She wants to be different, not by being philanthropic or creative, but by blasting off into space. Good for her, maybe one day she’ll be sent off forever to live on the moon.