America’s first black astronaut, Ed Dwight, finally, after six decades, made his first trip to space on Sunday, May 19.
According to NPR, a 90-year-old astronaut went to space with the five crew members on Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket.
After approximately 10 minutes, suborbital flight became the oldest man in history to reach space, beating Star Trek actor William Shatner by just a few months, who went up on a New Shepard rocket in 2021.
The rocket carrying Dwight reached more than 347,000 feet, crossing 330,000 feet higher than the imaginary line that denotes the boundary of space, the Karman line.
Dwight shook his two fists in the air in triumph and said, “Fantastic! A life-changing experience. Everyone needs to do this! I didn't know I needed this in my life, but now I need it in my life."
Speaking with NPR hours after the launch, he expressed, “I've got bragging rights now. All these years, I've been called an astronaut, (but) now I have a little (astronaut) pin, which is...a totally different matter."
He shared his experience, saying, “That line between the atmosphere and space. It was like somebody pulled the curtains down over the windows.”
Dwight wants to go again in the space, he asserted, “I want to go into orbit. I want to go around the Earth and see the whole Earth. That's what I want to do now."
