Katy Perry, Gayle King, Lauren Sánchez to Join Jeff Bezos' Next Space Mission

Although Blue Origin did not provide a date, the corporation stated that the 11th crewed flight of its New Shepard rocket is scheduled to launch this spring.

The all-female crew of six will include former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, bioastronautics research scientist Amanda Nguyen, and film producer Kerianne Flynn, in addition to "CBS Mornings" co-host King, Bezos' girlfriend Sanchez, and pop sensation Perry.

"CBS Mornings" used an opening crawl and a font reminiscent of "Star Wars" to humorously announce King's expedition. King, 70, claimed that after being approached, she had first turned down the trip but later changed her mind.

"I'm really enthusiastic about it, but I'm also really scared. They asked me around Thanksgiving, and I said, 'No, no, no.' Then I began to consider it," she remarked. "And I just thought, What a unique opportunity."  

Just outside Van Horn, Texas, on Tuesday, the New Shepard completed its tenth crewed flight.

The trips take only about eleven minutes. Travelers ascend to a height of slightly more than 100 kilometers (62 miles), which is regarded as the Earth-space border.

After passengers have enjoyed a few minutes of sight and weightlessness, the autonomous, pilotless suborbital vehicle returns. To ensure a safe landing, three huge parachutes slow its descent.

Former New York Giants star Michael Strahan, "Star Trek" actor William Shatner, company founder Bezos, and astronaut Alan Shepard's daughter Laura Shepard Churchley are among the well-known individuals who have previously taken such flights.

The elder Shepard, the first American in space, is the inspiration behind the name of New Shepard.

In July 2021, Bezos, his brother Mark Bezos, pioneering pilot Wally Funk, and Dutch youngster Oliver Daemen conducted the first crewed flight of the New Shepard.

However, following an uncrewed launch in 2022, a rocket booster crashed to the ground, forcing the business to halt operations for two years, from 2022 to 2024.

Although there is no official price tag on the company's website, a New Shepard ticket costs well into the six digits.

Potential space tourists are reminded via the Blue Origin tickets application that the corporation "will collect a $150,000 USD fully refundable deposit to begin the order process."