WASHINGTON: Pop star Katy Perry completed a brief foray into space on Monday, roaring to the edge of the cosmos with an all-women crew on one of billionaire Jeff Bezos’s rockets.

The “Firework” and “California Gurls” singer was lofted more than 60 miles (100 kilometers) above the Earth’s surface in a vessel from Blue Origin, the space company owned by the Amazon founder.

Five other women — including Bezos’s fiancee Lauren Sanchez — were on the flight, which took off from western Texas shortly after 8:30am before safely landing again some 10 minutes later. The flight brought the passengers beyond the Karman line — the internationally recognised boundary of space.

One of the other passengers, TV presenter Gayle King, said Perry sang “What a wonderful world” in space. “It’s a 10 out of 10. That’s my review. Definitely go for it,” the singer said after she was safely back on Earth.

Their fully automated craft rose vertically before the crew capsule detached mid-flight, later falling back to the ground slowed by parachutes and a retro rocket. The jubilant women then emerged, with Perry kissing the ground after exiting the capsule.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2025