After 8 successful space tourism missions, Blue Origin has announced the guests of its next flight. The NS-28 mission will be the 9th human flight for the company’s New Shepard program and the 28th in its history. To date, the program has flown 43 humans above the Kármán line, the internationally recognized boundary of space, and these are the next lucky 6:
1. Emily Calandrelli
Emily is an MIT engineer, Emmy-nominated TV host and New York Times best-selling author, known as The Space Gal to her nearly 3 million followers. With the premiere of Xploration Outer Space (2014-present), she became the first American woman to be the sole host of a nationally broadcast science series. Through her activism, she helped write a bill to improve the TSA’s treatment of breastfeeding mothers and started a campaign which improved parental leave in the aerospace industry. Host of Emily’s Wonder Lab on Netflix and Emily’s Science Lab on YouTube, and author of nine books, Emily works to inspire young people, particularly little girls, to see themselves in STEM.
2. Sharon Hagle
Sharon is the founder of SpaceKids Global, a nonprofit she created in 2015 whose mission is to inspire elementary students to excel in STEAM education, ensuring girls are equally represented. SpaceKids hosts several annual challenges designed to inspire kids to pursue careers in the space industry, including national essay competitions, sending science projects to the International Space Station and a partnership with Girl Scouts. SpaceKids also participates in Club for the Future’s Postcards to Space program. To date, she has reached over 867,000 students globally.
3. Marc Hagle
Marc is president and CEO of Tricor International, a residential and commercial property development corporation. Under his direction, the company has developed and owned more than 17 million square feet of properties across the United States, including shopping centres, warehouses, medical facilities, recreational facilities, drug stores and office projects. Marc and his wife, Sharon, are avid philanthropists for numerous arts, sciences, health and education-related charities. Sharon and Marc first flew to space on NS-20 on 31 March 2022, becoming the first married couple to launch on a commercial space vehicle.
4. James (J.D.) Russell
J.D. is a serial entrepreneur and founder of InfoHOA, a company specialising in technology-based community management solutions. He has earned the Billy Mitchell Award in the Civil Air Patrol. Before starting his entrepreneur career, J.D. served as a federal law enforcement Marine, Fish, and Wildlife Game Warden. He also founded the Victoria Russell Foundation to honour the memory of his deceased daughter. The foundation is dedicated to supporting children’s education and assistance to families of first responders, and is a proud partner with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to bring the love of reading to children by gifting them books.
5. Henry (Hank) Wolfond
Henry is the Chairman and CEO of Bayshore Capital in Toronto, Canada. A lifelong aviator, Henry holds an Airline Transport Pilots license for fixed wing aircraft and a Commercial Pilots License for Helicopters. He moonlights as a professional pilot on charter, medevac and organ retrieval flights. He is also the Chair of the Confronting Antisemitism Committee of the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto and currently serves on the boards of the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee (CJPAC), the Toronto General and Western Hospital Foundation (UHN Foundation), and on the Board of Governors for Hillel Ontario. Henry is also a co-founder of the Autism Acceptance Project.
6. Austin Litteral
Austin works as a risk management professional in the financial services industry. He spends his free time hiking in state parks with his family and cheering for the local sports teams. This trip will fulfil a childhood dream of becoming an astronaut, having grown up with photos of NASA shuttle launches in his bedroom. He won his seat as part of the Whatnot to the Moon giveaway, from the Whatnot livestream shopping platform.
