The first all-female space crew launched from West Texas. Hetty Chang reports on the star studded names on the Blue Origin trip for the NBC4 News at 4 p.m. on Monday, April 14, 2025.
What to Know
- Amanda Nguyễn, a graduate of Centennial High School in Corona, was one of six women aboard Blue Origin when it rocketed to the edge of space.
- Nguyễn, a rape survivor, shared a heartfelt message after the capsule touched down in Texas.
- Nguyễn is the founder of RISE, a nonprofit that advocates for sexual assault victims.
- The bioastronautics research scientist drafted the Sexual Assault Survivors' Rights Act, a bill that passed unanimously in the U.S. Congress.
Amanda Nguyễn realized a dream Monday when the graduate of Centennial High School in Corona flew to the edge of space as part of Blue Origin's all-female crew.
Nguyễn, a rape survivor, shared a heartfelt message after the capsule parachuted to a gentle touchdown in the Texas desert.
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"I just want every survivor and every person who's ever had a dream deferred to know that your dreams are valid," Nguyễn said. "And even if your dreams are as wild as going to space, they matter. And you can get there too. If I can get there, you can get there too."
Nguyễn also posted a photo of the moment she emerged from the capture with arms raised after she became the first Vietnamese and Southeast Asian woman in space.
Nguyễn is the founder of RISE, a nonprofit that advocates for sexual assault victims. She is a survivor of sexual assault who describes herself as a pathological optimist.
The bioastronautics research scientist drafted the Sexual Assault Survivors' Rights Act, a bill that passed unanimously in the U.S. Congress. Nguyễn was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for her work to pass the legislation.
Her classmates at Centennial High School in Corona voted her Most Likely to Become President. Nguyễn graduated from Harvard University 2013 and was named a TIME Woman of the Year in 2022.
Nguyễn was on board with capsule with singer Katy Perry; "CBS Mornings" host Gayle King; Lauren Sanchez, former journalist and the fiancee of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos; former NASA scientist Aisha Bowe; and Kerianne Flynn, a movie producer.
After liftoff from the Blue Origin base in Texas, she traveled to the edge of space in a flight that lasted about 10 minutes and took the women to an altitude of about 62 miles.
The mission was the 11th human spaceflight for the Washington state-based company, founded by Bezos in 2000. Bezos was part of Blue Origin’s first space tourist flight in 2021 and accompanied the latest crew to the pad.
Most of Blue Origin's 50-some passengers have been part of the business or science worlds, TV hosts and YouTubers. Ticket prices for the space flights are not disclosed.
The only other all-female crew in 64 years of human spaceflight was in 1963 when Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova launched by herself. She was the first woman in space and spent three days off the planet.
