The US-headquartered Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA), in collaboration with the Jeff Bezos-owned rocket company, Blue Origin, today announced India as a “partner nation” in its human flight program for citizens. The Agency wants to democratize space flight, taking citizens from countries that have never sent an astronaut to space or sent very few. 

By naming India as a “partner nation”, SERA is calling upon Indians to nominate themselves for selection—a process that will cost $2.4 per person. Then the list of nominees is open for voting—by friends, relatives etc. Whosoever wins the most votes gets to go on an 11-minute flight across the Karman line, 100 km above the earth, on Blue Origin’s reusable, suborbital rocket, New Shepard.  

SERA offers “six seats” for common citizens to fly onboard New Shepard. 

Really anybody 

Speaking to businessline, Sam Hutchinson and Joshua Skurla, both C-Founders of the Agency, said that anybody could fly. “When we say ‘anybody’, we mean just anybody,” Hutchinson said. This means you don’t have to be of great built or be a millionaire. “Even a grandma from Bengaluru can fly,” he said. 

All it requires is for the selected person to undergo three days of training. 

Hutchinson and Skurla stressed that the idea was not space tourism but space research. SERA’s website names three areas of research. The research itself will be conducted by scientists of a US-based educational institute, whose name SERA will be disclosed shortly. These three areas are cellular biology, involving autonomous experiments exploring the effects of microgravity on biological cell structures; fluid dynamics, involving astronaut-tended experiments exploring new ways to experiment with fluids in space; and human physiology, which involves wearable, sensor-based experiments examining the effects of suborbital flight on the human body. 

“Any Indian citizen can register for the program by paying a fee of ~$2.50 to cover the costs of verification checks that ensure safe and fair voting. The final candidates will be voted on by the public for an opportunity to fly to space onboard the New Shepard mission,” says a press release issued by SERA.  

“Our mission is to democratize space by enabling citizens from over 150 countries with limited access to space to participate in ground-breaking research and create history,” said Joshua Skurla in the release. “Our aim is to empower people globally to have a voice and stake in the future of space exploration.” 

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