A Billionaire's Long-Awaited Space Adventure

The Crypto Mogul's Space Adventure

Justin Sun, the crypto mogul, is finally set to embark on a journey to space. He paid a whopping $28 million for a seat on Blue Origin's New Shepard spacecraft. This is not his first attempt:

• 2021: Scheduled to fly but had to cancel due to scheduling issues.
• 2022: Planned to go with a group called "Space Warriors" but that didn't happen either.

Now, he's officially on the list for the next flight, NS-34.

The Diverse Group of Passengers

Sun is not the only one going up. He will be joined by a diverse group of passengers:

• Arvinder Singh Bahal: A real estate investor who has visited every country and both poles.
• Gökhan Erdem: A Turkish businessman and space enthusiast.
• Deborah Martorell: A journalist and meteorologist from Puerto Rico, who has taken a microgravity flight and reported on NASA's Artemis 1 mission.
• Lionel Pitchford: An Englishman living in Spain, who founded a nonprofit in Nepal after losing his sister and her family in a plane crash.
• James Russell: An entrepreneur and founder of the Victoria Russell Foundation, the only one with prior spaceflight experience. He flew on the NS-28 mission in November 2024.

The New Shepard Spacecraft

The New Shepard spacecraft is designed for a smooth ride:

• Autonomous: Passengers can just sit back and enjoy the view.
• Flight Duration: About 10 to 12 minutes, reaching an altitude of over 62 miles.
• Experience: A few minutes of weightlessness and a view of Earth from space.
• Launch Site: Blue Origin's site in West Texas, near Van Horn.

The Upcoming Flight

This will be the 14th crewed flight for New Shepard and the fifth mission of 2025. The last one, NS-33, took off on June 29. Blue Origin has not yet announced the exact date for NS-34, but it's expected soon.

Sun's journey to space has been a long time coming, and it's finally within reach.