Lauren Sanchez Is Taking Her “Girl Gang” To Space

Jeff Bezos’s space company, Blue Origin, is making history with its next mission—an all-female crewed flight set to launch this spring. The NS-31 mission will carry six high-profile women, including journalist Gayle King, pop icon Katy Perry, and Bezos’s fiancée, Lauren Sánchez, for a brief but groundbreaking journey past the Kármán line—the official boundary of space.

This will be the first all-female human spaceflight since Valentina Tereshkova’s solo mission in 1963, making it a milestone for women in space exploration.

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Meet the Women on Board

The mission’s crew consists of accomplished women from various fields:

• Lauren Sánchez – An experienced helicopter pilot and founder of Black Ops Aviation, the first female-owned aerial film and production company. She was instrumental in selecting the team for this historic mission.
• Amanda Nguyen – A bioastronautics research scientist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, known for her advocacy work for sexual violence survivors. She previously worked on NASA’s STS-135 shuttle mission and the Kepler exoplanet mission.
• Aisha Bowe – A former NASA rocket scientist and entrepreneur, Bowe is a STEM advocate aiming to inspire young women and underrepresented communities to pursue careers in science and space.
• Gayle King – The CBS Mornings co-host and award-winning journalist, who called the opportunity to fly to space an honour and a chance to step out of her comfort zone.
• Katy Perry – The global pop star and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador hopes her trip to space will encourage her daughter and young girls worldwide to reach for the stars—literally.
• Kerianne Flynn – A film producer with a background in fashion and HR, Flynn has always been drawn to exploration and adventure. She hopes this mission will inspire her son and future generations of dreamers.

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The Tech Behind the Mission

The NS-31 mission will launch on Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket, a fully autonomous, reusable suborbital system named after Alan Shepard, the first American astronaut in space.

The 11-minute journey will take the six women past the Kármán line (100km above Earth), officially entering space. With no pilots onboard, the rocket relies on AI-driven autonomous systems, making it a technological marvel in space tourism.

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A Turning Point for Women in Space

Beyond the short but historic flight, this mission symbolises progress for women in space exploration, inspiring a new generation of female scientists, engineers, and astronauts.

“I hope this mission serves as a beacon for young girls everywhere—space is for everyone,” Sánchez said in Blue Origin’s official press release.

With increasing advancements in private space travel, it’s clear that missions like NS-31 are just the beginning of a new era in space exploration—one where women take centre stage.