Gopi Thotakura, an accomplished entrepreneur and pilot, has distinguished himself as the first Indian to travel into space as a tourist on Blue Origin’s NS-25 mission, initiated by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Thotakura was among the six individuals chosen for this mission, which launched from West Texas and ascended to the edge of space on a Sunday.
Another notable passenger on this flight was Ed Dwight, the first Black astronaut candidate from the 1960s United States space program. At 90 years and eight months old, Dwight became the oldest person to journey into space. Upon landing, he expressed his exhilaration, stating, “I am ecstatic.”
Blue Origin highlighted Thotakura’s extensive aviation background, noting that he learned to fly before he could drive. He is a co-founder of Preserve Life Corp, a global wellness and health center located near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. In addition to commercial jet piloting, Thotakura is skilled in flying bush planes, aerobatic planes, seaplanes, gliders, and hot air balloons. His international experience includes serving as a medical jet pilot. An avid adventurer, Thotakura recently reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro and is a graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
The NS-25 mission is notable for being the seventh manned flight of Blue Origin’s New Shepard program and the 25th flight overall. To date, the program has taken 31 individuals beyond the Karman line, which is the recognized boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space. This flight also marked the revival of Blue Origin’s space tourism business, which had been paused since the New Shepard rocket was grounded in 2022. New Shepard is a fully reusable sub-orbital launch vehicle designed by Blue Origin for space tourism purposes.
The mission’s crew included Mason Angel, Sylvain Chiron, Kenneth L. Hess, Carol Schaller, and Ed Dwight, who had been selected by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 as the first Black astronaut candidate but had never previously flown into space. Blue Origin celebrated the achievement on social media, acknowledging the contributions of the astronauts in advancing space travel.
Phil Joyce, Senior Vice President of New Shepard, expressed gratitude towards the astronaut customers, emphasizing their role as pioneers in the mission to build a sustainable path to space for the benefit of Earth.
Key statistics from the mission include the Crew Capsule reaching an apogee of 347,464 feet above ground level (AGL) and 351,111 feet mean sea level (MSL), and the booster reaching 347,105 feet AGL and 350,752 feet MSL. The official launch time was 9:35:09 AM CDT, with the capsule landing at 9:45:02 AM CDT. The mission elapsed time was 9 minutes and 53 seconds, with a maximum ascent velocity of 2,236 mph.
