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First Mexican-Born Woman to Go to Space Will Do So on Next Blue Origin Flight

Say what you will about commercial space exploration, but the rise of the likes of Virgin Galactic, SpaceX, and Blue Origin has surely opened up the sky for more people to touch it than we ever thought possible.
Blue Origin NS-21 crew 10 photos
Photo: Blue Origin
New Shepard rocket is headed to the edge of spaceNew Shepard rocket is getting ready for take offNew Shepard rocket is headed to the edge of spaceNew Shepard rocket is headed to the edge of spaceThe rocket booster has landed back at Blue Origin's Launch Site One in West TexasJeff Bezos, his brother Mark, aviation legend Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen are in the capsule after a safe touchdownJeff Bezos, his brother Mark, aviation legend Wally FunkAviation legend Wally FunkNew Shepard rocket is headed to the edge of space
In the span of just a year or so, we’ve had a 90-year old man fly to orbit (Star Trek’s William Shatner, on a Blue Origin flight), an 82-year old woman, Wally Funk, do the same (also on a Blue Origin rocket), and a cancer survivor, Hayley Arceneaux, spend a few days out there (on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon).

The above has made one thing incredibly clear: you don’t have to necessarily be perfectly fit and healthy, or young, or specifically trained to be able to survive a trip to space and back.

All this incredible push to expand humanity’s horizons will soon see the first African American, and the first woman, land on the Moon as part of the NASA Artemis program. Until that happens though, a few more barriers need to be taken down.

One of these barriers will suffer such fate as soon as Blue Origin launches its fifth human flight in the near future (official date was not yet made public) - Jeff Bezos’ company just announced the crew that will make up the NS-21 mission, with six people on the manifest.

First up is Evan Dick, now at his second trip to space after the NS-19 mission, seconded by business jet pilot Hamish Harding. Civil production engineer Victor Correa Hespanha will also take a seat on the New Shepard, as will adventurer Jaison Robinson and explorer Victor Vescovo.

The star of this crew, if you will, is 26-year old former NASA test lead Katya Echazarreta, who, according to Blue Origin, will become “the first Mexican-born woman and youngest American woman to fly to space.”

She is making the trip as part of Space for Humanity’s sponsored Citizen Astronaut Program, says Blue Origin.
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Editor's note: Gallery shows images from previous Blue Origin launches.

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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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