Blue Origin has announced the six-person crew for its upcoming NS-26 mission, which will mark the eighth human flight for the New Shepard program. NS-26, will lift off from Launch Site One in West Texas on Thursday, August 29. The launch window opens at 8:00 AM CDT / 1300 UTC. The webcast on BlueOrigin.com will start at T-40 minutes.
Blue Origin’s first human flight – New Shepard rocket launch July 20, 2021
The crew includes a mix of entrepreneurs, researchers, medical professionals, and space enthusiasts from diverse backgrounds.
Nicolina Elrick, a philanthropist and entrepreneur, will join the mission alongside Rob Ferl, a distinguished professor and director of the Astraeus Space Institute at the University of Florida. Ferl will conduct an experiment on plant genes in microgravity, making him the first NASA-funded researcher to do so on a commercial suborbital space crew.
Eugene Grin, a real estate and finance professional, will also be on board, along with Dr. Eiman Jahangir, a cardiologist and Associate Professor of Medicine and Radiology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Jahangir's seat is sponsored by MoonDAO, an organization dedicated to accelerating a multiplanetary future.
Karsen Kitchen, a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will become the youngest woman ever to cross the Kármán line. She is majoring in Communications and Astronomy and has founded an initiative to encourage women to pursue careers in the space industry.
Rounding out the crew is Ephraim Rabin, an American-Israeli businessman, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of Parchem Fine & Specialty Chemicals and a trustee and mentor at various organizations.
NS-26 Crew
The NS-26 mission will be the 26th flight for the New Shepard program, which has flown 37 humans above the Kármán line to date. The flight date will be announced soon.
As Blue Origin continues to push the boundaries of space exploration, the company is also eyeing the development of its next-generation launch vehicle, New Glenn. Designed to be capable of launching payloads and people into low-Earth orbit, New Glenn will feature a reusable first stage and a BE-4 engine, which is currently under development.
New Glenn is expected to play a critical role in Blue Origin's plans for lunar and planetary exploration, with the company aiming to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon and eventually send humans to Mars.
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