‘Space Gal' Emily Calandrelli among 6 launched into space Friday by Blue Origin

Blue Origin launched its ninth crewed flight into suborbital space on Friday.

The flight aboard the New Shepherd rocket blasted off the Launch Site One launch pad in Van Horn, Texas, at about 9:30 a.m. The capsule landed 10 minutes and 15 seconds after reaching an apogee of 347,661 feet above the ground.

The Karman line, the boundary between the Earth's atmosphere and outer space, is recognized to be about 328,000 feet.

We’re at T-2 minutes and counting. Watch the #NS28 crew fly to space. 🚀 https://t.co/Xm3HCzZsJk

— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) November 22, 2024

Last week, Blue Origin revealed the six people flying on its latest mission, NS-28. The crew includes TV host and "Space Gal" Emily Calandrelli, Austin Litteral, James (J.D.) Russell, and Henry (Hank) Wolfond. The trip will also include returning Blue Origin customers Sharon Hagle and Marc Hagle, who first flew to space on NS-20 on March 31, 2022.

Emily Calandrelli, who studied aerospace engineering at MIT and hosted the Netflix show Emily's Wonder Lab and later Emily's Science Lab on YouTube, announced in July she was becoming an astronaut with Blue Origin. Calandrelli has published nine science books targeted toward girls and STEM programs. She said in an online post that she's excited to be one of the first 100 women in space and hopes to use the mission to show girls they can reach the stars.

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A post shared by Emily Calandrelli (@thespacegal)

Austin Litteral is a risk management professional in the financial services industry. He grew up with photos of NASA shuttle launches in his bedroom, and the trip will fulfill his childhood dream of becoming an astronaut. Austin won his seat as part of the Whatnot to the Moon giveaway.

James Russell is an entrepreneur and former federal game warden. He's earned the Billy Mitchell Award in the Civil Air Patrol and founded the Victoria Russell Foundation to honor his deceased daughter. Blue Origin said the foundation is "dedicated to supporting children’s education and assistance to families of first responders, and is a proud partner with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to bring the love of reading to children by gifting books free of charge to children."

Henry Wolfond is CEO of Bayshore Capital in Toronto, Canada, and a lifelong aviator. He moonlights as a charter pilot for medevac and organ retrieval flights and is the chair of the Confronting Antisemitism Committee of the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. He serves on several boards in Toronto and co-founded the Autism Acceptance Project.

Sharon Hagle founded SpaceKids Global, a nonprofit that inspires students to excel in STEAM education and ensures girls are equally represented. In 2022, Sharon and her husband, Marc, became the first married couple to launch on a commercial space vehicle. Marc Hagle is the president of a property development corporation. They are avid philanthropists, funding health, arts, sciences, and education-related charities.

Blue Origin

The patch worn by the space tourists will include symbols uniquely representing each.

• The color pink and the girl in the signature pink overalls represents Emily Calandrelli.
• The centerline in the “2” represents Sharon and Marc Hagle’s second flight on New Shepard.
• The stars represent Austin Litteral’s vision for people among the stars.
• The people at the bottom represent J.D. Russell’s hope for generations of people to expand their understanding of the world.
• The wolf in the crew capsule’s window represents Hank Wolfond.