Jeff Bezos is on track to beat his millionaire pals to the moon.
On Monday, Bezos announced that he will fly to space on Blue Origin’s first crewed mission next month. The flight is set to take off on July 20, approximately two weeks after Bezos resigns as Amazon‘s CEO.
Mark Bezos, Bezos’ younger brother, will accompany him, as will the winner of a public auction for a seat that is presently being held. The auction had $2.8 million in bids as of Monday morning.
“Ever since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space,” Bezos wrote on Instagram. “On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend.” He also hash tagged in Latin “Gradatim ferociter,” translating to “step by step, ferociously.”
In the video announcement, Bezos said, “I want to go on this flight because it’s the thing I’ve wanted to do all my life,” he continued, “It’s an adventure. It’s a big deal for me.”
Bezos will become the first of the billionaire space tycoons to travel to space via his own company if nothing unexpected happens. Elon Musk, the SpaceX founder and CEO, and Richard Branson, the Virgin Galactic founder, have yet to take their firms to space.
Musk has previously spoken about his company’s plans to travel to space but has yet to provide a precise date.
Branson, whose Virgin Galactic aims to compete directly with Blue Origin in the space tourism market, has made no secret of his desire to be among the first people to travel to space with his company. However, Virgin Galactic’s first scheduled passenger flights have been pushed back until later this year due to delays.
Blue Origin’s rocket ship, New Shepard, has completed more than a dozen successful uncrewed test flights.
The system is capable of transporting up to six individuals at a time to the edge of space. The capsule boasts massive windows that provide travelers with a panoramic view of the Earth. Passengers will experience zero gravity for a few minutes before turning back to earth.
Bezos said in the video, “To see the Earth from space, it changes you.”
Blue Origin is also developing rockets for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, putting the business in direct competition with SpaceX.
Musk and Bezos have feuded in the past about their space ventures. Blue Origin filed an official appeal to NASA’s decision to grant SpaceX a $2.9 billion contract to develop a moon lander for American astronauts in April.
Musk responded with a tweet that read, “Can’t get it up (to orbit) lol.”
That appears to be a reference to the fact that none of Blue Origin’s rockets have yet to reach space.
Musk later modified a photograph of Bezos with Blue Origin’s moon-lander prototype to read “blue balls” on Twitter.
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