Having the opportunity to overcome Earth’s gravity well and launch into space can be a spiritual and revelatory experience for those lucky enough to hitch a private ride on a rocket, as pop star Katy Perryand her historic all-female crew did on their Blue Origin trip from West Texas today (April 14).
Joining Perry on the 10.5-minute suborbital NS-31 mission, which lifted off from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One, were CBS journalist Gayle King, philanthropist and author Lauren Sánchez, ex-NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, research scientist Amanda Nguyen and film producer Kerianne Flynn.
“I’m still floating,” King said, visibly moved by the successful mission. “I can’t believe it. I cannot believe it.”
After marveling at the odd sensation of a short period of weightlessness in microgravity and taking in the extraordinary views, the intrepid gang and their craft surrendered to Earth’s comforting tug, and the group safely touched back down on the desert floor in a soft parachute-aided landing.
Given the designated callsign of Sunshine, Gayle King stepped out of the capsule and raised her hands toward the heavens before kneeling to kiss terra firma in appreciation and gave thanks to Jesus.
“What happened to us was not a ride; this was a bona fide friggin’ flight,” King said in a post-flight interview. “We were so well prepared. Every noise we heard, we knew. The flight instructor said that I am her best success story. Why? Because she’s never had somebody go through the course who’s terrified of flying. Everybody who’s gone through the course is somebody that it’s been a life-long dream — they’ve wanted to do it. So she said I’m her best success story. I’m so proud of me right now. I still can’t believe it.”
Catching her breath for a beat, King reflected more on her heightened state of mind and personal thoughts when looking back at our fragile world from space.
“It’s oddly quiet when you get up there; it’s really quiet and peaceful,” she noted. “And you look down at the planet and you think, ‘That’s where we came from?’ To me, it’s such a reminder about how we need to do better, be better human beings. It’s so nasty and so vitriolic nowadays. If everybody could experience that peace that we had up there, and the kindness, and what it takes to do what we did, all the people it took to get us up there and get us back safely — I’ll never ever forget.”
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For those unaccustomed to navigating one’s body in zero gravity, it’s nowhere near as simple as it looks, as King can attest.
“I looked like a friggin’ moose getting into the chair,” she recalled. “Just let me get in the chair! Let me get the seatbelt on! It’s very difficult because you’re floating.”
Confronting and overcoming mortal fears while embarking on this Blue Origin training regimen and suborbital flight was a life-changing event for the veteran journalist, and lessons learned will extend to her life back on Earth moving forward, where she feels she can now take on anything.
“I’m very glad I did it,” she shared. “I have no regrets about doing it. I’m stepping way out of my comfort zone, because this so not like me. I might now get my ears pierced! I’ve always been afraid.”
