Blue Origin auctions New Shepard ride with Jeff Bezos for $28 million
Blue Origin’s month-long auction for a trip to the edge of space with its billionaire founder Jeff Bezos ended on Saturday with a closing price of $28 million. The flight aboard New Shepard, slated for July 20th, will mark the company’s first crewed mission to the edge of space, where the winning bidder will bask in roughly 10 minutes of microgravity with Bezos, his brother Mark and other passesngers before returning back to land.
The identity of the winner wasn’t disclosed — “we need to complete some final paperwork with them,” says Blue Origin’s astronaut sales director Ariane Cornell during the live broadcast. The price began at $4.8 million, and dozens of telephone operators were gathered at a warehouse representing 20 bidders. The proceeds will go to Blue Origin’s nonprofit charity Club For The Future.
“The more you pay for it the more you enjoy it,” the auctioneer said at one point.
New Shepard is a 60-foot-tall reusable rocket designed to shoot a gumdrop-shaped capsule with seats for six to the edge of space for a 10-minute experience in microgravity.
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Blue Origin’s month-long auction for a trip to the edge of space with its billionaire founder Jeff Bezos ended on Saturday with a closing price of $28 million. The flight aboard New Shepard, slated for July 20th, will mark the company’s first crewed mission to the edge of space, where…
