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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Technology
Benjamin Lynch

Blue Origin rocket launch - when is it, who's on it and how to watch

The next spaceflight for Blue Origin had to be rearranged due to bad weather but will take place later this week.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' New Shepard ship will take off from the company launch site in Texas and the flight will be called 'NS-20', due to it being the 20th flight by a New Shepard vehicle.

Billionaire Bezos, who will not be on board, has already become the second billionaire in space, though he was the first to reach above the famous 'Karman line'.

The Karman line is the point in which the atmosphere is too thin for conventional aircraft to remain in flight. Richard Branson was the first billionaire to go above the 50-mile mark, which is the start of space according to NASA.

The flight was also due to have comedian Pete Davidson on board, but he had to pull out after the flight was rescheduled.

When is the next Blue Origin flight?

New Shepard had to rearrange due to bad weather, but is set to take off on Thursday (via REUTERS)

The next Blue Origin flight will take place on Thursday, March 31 at 1:30pm local time, weather permitting.

The flight will only be around 11 minutes long and will fire passengers up to 60 miles above the Earth, before using trusty old gravity to glide safely back down.

Blue Origin said on Twitter : "#NewShepard Mission Operations has successfully completed Flight Readiness Review and weather is the only remaining factor to get to launch."

How can I watch the Blue Origin flight?

Space enthusiasts can watch the next New Shepard flight on YouTube (via REUTERS)

Space enthusiasts hoping to watch the next Blue Origin flight can tune into a webcast on Thursday morning via YouTube.

In the build-up, the channel also has plenty of videos of previously flights, as well as a look at how the company works and how the rockets are made.

Who is on the next Blue Origin flight?

Pete Davidson pulled out of the space flight due to scheduling difficulties (Instagram)

The next Blue Origin flight contains an assortment of influential business people on board, including Marty Allen, Jim Kitchen, George Nield and Sharon and Marc Hagle.

Gary Lai is the only non-paying passenger on the fight, given a spot as a Blue Origin employee and architect of New Shepard.

Allen, meanwhile, is a former CEO of a party supply chain and runs a closet design company. He said: "I used to build rockets and play with them as a kid. I always dreamed about space."

Kitchen is a faculty member of the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler Business School and teaches classes on being an entrepreneur.

He is a keen traveller and has visited all of the 193 UN member countries, so may well enjoy looking at Earth from a different perspective.

Commercial Space Technologies president and founder Nield will also be on board and has worked on the promotion of space tourism, while Sharon and Marc Hagle will be the first married couple to fly together on a commercial space flight.

Sharon is the founder of nonprofit SpaceKids Global, which aims to encourage young people to pursue careers in science, technology engineering, art and maths.

Blue Origin has kept fairly quiet about the price of tickets, but they are estimated to cost somewhere around £150,000 to £220,000, according to 2018 estimates. One bidder, Oliver Daemen, won a ticket to space for just over £21 million in an auction.

Thursday's flight was originally supposed to have comedian Pete Davidson on board, but he cancelled after his schedule did not align with the rearranged flight.

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