I am not one who gets all hot and bothered about the space tourism industry. 

I don't have the kind of money that would make a trip above the Kármán Line affordable, and if I were in the mood to admit it, I would be nervous about sitting atop a controlled explosion to get there. The idea of being up there is attractive, but the mechanics of getting there would freak me out. 

Katy Perry just became the first pop star to go to space!!

But this wasn’t just a celebrity photo op—here’s what actually happened, what it means for the future

On April 14, Katy boarded Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket with five other women—including Lauren Sánchez and Gayle… pic.twitter.com/6OLfqMjgFm

— Jacklyn Dallas (@NBTJacklyn) April 15, 2025

Katy Perry just became the first pop star to go to space!!

But this wasn’t just a celebrity photo op—here’s what actually happened, what it means for the future

On April 14, Katy boarded Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket with five other women—including Lauren Sánchez and Gayle King—for an 11-minute flight.

The rocket soared 100 kilometers above Earth, crossing the boundary where space officially begins known as the the Kármán line

They floated in zero gravity. Katy Perry even sang mid-flight—in space.

Each seat reportedly cost between $200,000 and $500,000, with some auctioned for as much as $28 million.

But Blue Origin’s ultimate goal isn’t just space tourism. It’s using space to help Earth—through research in microgravity that could lead to breakthroughs in medicine, materials, and sustainability, and by launching satellites to expand global internet access.

This isn’t about escaping Earth—it’s about using space exploration to improve life back home:)

I think it's cool that people can make the trip, although Blue Origin's brief flights do seem a bit lame compared to SpaceX's orbital flights that rival NASA's achievements since Apollo (landing on the moon is uniquely cool, and SpaceX is a long way from that yet). 

SpaceX passengers on the Polaris Dawn crew--Jared Isaacman, Scott Poteet, Sarah Gillis, and Anna Menon--have traveled the farthest from Earth since NASA stopped sending men to the moon. 

This gets me to the point of why I find the latest New Shepard flight so annoying. 

The “historic” all female rocket barely even touches what is technically considered “space”

On the right is Elon’s Falcon 9 orbital rocket, the booster alone goes twice as high as the Katy Perry rocket.

I’m all for women’s achievements but this is not one of them… pic.twitter.com/n4ScZ8EDCb

— Chloe Cole ⭐️ (@ChoooCole) April 14, 2025

The achievement of a few celebrities getting shot 65 miles above the Earth is not nothing but in the grand scheme of things, it also isn't that much. 

History in motion as these pioneers soar aboard New Shepard @blueorigin
Empowering, inspiring, and truly out of this world! #MissionNS31 #BlueOrigin #WomenInSpace pic.twitter.com/hrrqCv2cbP

— Oksana Sosa (@sosa_oksana) April 14, 2025

This flight is getting so much attention not because of what it was but rather who went on the trip. Almost all the attention is focused on the fact that it was all female (how do they know??), that the crew was all celebrities, and that the "spacesuits" (they were really just jumpers made to make the women look good) were "designer." 

Today, Katy Perry became the first human since Neal Armstrong and Buzz Peterson to set foot on another planet

What an amazing moment for America, which proved once again why it is the oldest and greatest country on earth pic.twitter.com/TUjmln68Rp

— Three Year Letterman (@3YearLetterman) April 14, 2025

There was nothing really new, nothing accomplished aside from inspiring a new Katy Perry song that will probably suck (what can top the video of "Hear Me Roar," another feminist anthem with Katy looking impossibly hot?), and great shots of Gayle King looking scared beyond belief (I would be too, so no judgment there). 

There is nothing annoying to me about anybody going into space for whatever reason, but unless they are doing something new or useful it is about as impressive as somebody hiking the Appalachian trail. Good for you! Now get off my TV screen because that is your deal, not mine.