Meet Karsen Kitchen, 21YO Becomes Youngest Woman To Fly To Space

A 21-year-old American student is making history as the world's youngest woman to fly to space. Karsen Kitchen, a University of North Carolina senior at Chapel Hill, flew aboard the Jeff Bezos-founded Blue Origin spacecraft alongside five others including a NASA-sponsored aerospace scientist. The six-member crew took off on a sub-orbital trip from the West Texas launch site at 9:07 am (local time) on August 29 and landed in about 10 minutes.

Who Is Karsen Kitchen?

According to Blue Origin, Karsen Kitchen is the youngest woman to cross the Kármán line, which is often regarded as 'the start of outer space'. She is a student of Communications with a minor in Astronomy. She reportedly takes after her father, Jim Kitchen, a UNC professor and space enthusiast.

Jim, who travelled aboard Blue Origin's NS-20 mission in March 2022, told American news outlets, "When she was a little girl, she told me definitively she was going to be an astronaut. It's emotional to see someone who's wanted to go to space and see it come true. To have that dream fulfilled is amazing."

After she landed, Karsen told WRAL News about the surreal experience, sharing that her life 'changed' when she saw the Earth from zero gravity. "It's this incredible fluorescent blue beating heart of the Earth... and to see our beautiful planet truly just changes your perspective on how lucky we are."

Blue Origin's Eighth Crewed Flight

Karsen was a part of Blue Origin's eighth human liftoff to space. The crew included University of Florida researcher Rob Ferl, philanthropist Nicolina Elrick, adventurer Eugene Grin, Vanderbilt University cardiologist Elman Jahangir, and American-Israeli entrepreneur Ephraim Rabin.

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CBS News reported that the New Shepard crew capsule, powered by a hydrogen-fueled rocket, reached a maximum speed of 2,238 mph before the rocket's BE-3 engine shut down. The crew enjoyed approximately three minutes of weightlessness and splendid views of Earth from an altitude of 62 miles.

According to NASA and the US Air Force, 50 miles is considered to be the threshold of space, while the
international boundary is 62 miles. By both measures, the New Shepard capsule passed into the lower reaches of space. The entire mission, from launch to landing, lasted 10 minutes and eight seconds.

Blue Origin launch commentator Ariane Cornell commented, "Up and back. That is just one of the cleanest flights I've seen from this rocket." Before Karsen Kitchen became the youngest woman, the company has launched younger space lovers; the youngest being 18-year-old Dutch student Oliver Daemen.