An Indian will get a free ride to space on Jeff Bezos' rocket

Washington, US

At a time when space agencies and private firms are looking to rake in billions of dollars by offering space tourism options, an American firm claims to offer a "free ride to space" for willing civilian candidates.

India is among the partner nations chosen by Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA), which has tied up with Jeff Bezos' firm Blue Origin to offer an 11-minute ride past the Karman Line (100 km above the earth's surface). The Karman line is widely regarded as the entry point to space. 

"We want to make space exploration open to all. We have raised funds to sponsor this mission, through which we will fly a six-membered crew, including an Indian," Joshua Skurla, Co-Founder, SERA, told WION. 

According to SERA, Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket would be used to ferry the candidates past the Karman line and then bring them back to earth for a controlled landing.

“We’re excited to have India as part of our human spaceflight programme. We want to make space accessible for everyone and are happy to offer this unique opportunity to an Indian citizen (above the age of 18) who wants to experience the wonders of space travel," said Joshua Skurla, CO-Founder, SERA. 

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According to the firm, the lone Indian candidate would be selected based on public voting, and each willing Indian citizen could register for the programme by paying a fee of $2.50 (approx. Rs. 200), which would cover the costs of verification that would ensure fair voting.

Each potential candidate can garner votes by telling their story to the public using their mission profile pages, social media, and other resources. Voting will progress through candidate elimination across three phases. The public will vote only for candidates from their nation or region, the firm said. 

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According to Sam Hutchison, Co-Founder, SERA, the minimal physical requirements and training for New Shepard’s flight lowers the barrier to entry by allowing more diverse and inclusive participation in space. The final crew members selected for the flight would train for three days in the run up to the flight. 

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Queried on the purpose of this flight and if it would be similar to space tourism, Sam Hutchison, Co-Founder, SERA, told WION that this would be a science experiment flight, where they would be partnering with a leading institute to develop the experiments that would focus on human physiology. "When we sent an astronaut from Brazil in 2022 to space through Blue Origin, we saw the social impact it created. Now we want to do the same through this mission for other nations," he added.