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Captain Kirk May Finally Be Going to Space at 90, No Warp Speed and Enterprise This Time

For years, the crew of the USS Enterprise made the rounds across several quadrants of the galaxy, inspiring entire generations to dream of space travel, exploration of the unknown, and incredible technology. But as things usually go with movies, what we saw there was never real.
USS Enterprise commanded by Captain Kirk 21 photos
Photo: Paramout Television/IMDB
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So no, Captain Kirk and his crew never left Earth, and the countless lightyears traveled each episode in a blink of an eye were something akin to wishful thinking. Luckily, wishful thinking from time to time pays off.

You see, Star Trek came about at a time when humanity was just beginning to take its first steps into space. The Original Series aired from 1965 to 1969, ending the exact same year when humans stepped onto the Moon, and opened up a franchise that endures to this day, with spin-offs like Picard or Discovery.

But it was that original series that for many will remain the best representative of humanity’s dreams of becoming a spacefaring species. And while during those glory years the Star Trek cast would not even dream of doing just a fraction of what their characters were doing, times have changed.

Captain Kirk, by his true name William Shatner, is presently 90 years old. He seems still to be able to do stuff and, according to TMZ, still willing to try for himself what his Kirk character tried in that make-believe universe decades ago.

According to the source, the company that took the oldest person (82-year old Wally Funk) to the edge of space not long ago, Blue Origin, might just put Shatner up in orbit for a few minutes.

Sure, the New Shepard is no Enterprise, and the Blue Origin experience is by no means equal to what Starfleet offered, but if this does come to fruition, it will be the first time ever someone who played a starship captain in a movie reaches space.

Shatner is supposed to be a passenger in Blue Origin’s second tourist flight, which would also become part of a documentary of some sort. The date of the launch has not been set, but it should take place by the end of this year.
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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