College Student, 21, Is Youngest to Cross Kármán line: Space

Karsen Kitchen, a 21-year-old college student at UNC, just became the youngest woman to cross the Kármán line in space.

Riding on Blue Origin’s New Shepard 26 flight, Kitchen and five other passengers soared past the border between the Earth’s atmosphere and outer space.

Related: Watch Jeff Bezos Show Off Blue Origin’s New Rocket, One of the Largest Ever Made, and His Massive Factory

“I have so many memories of going outside when I was younger, looking up at the night sky. I would come in and be like ‘Y’all, I want to be an astronaut,'” Kitchen said in a recent interview. “I feel so grateful and It feels unreal. I still feel like I really haven’t processed it all.”

Kitchen is following in the footsteps of her father, Jim Kitchen, who was a passenger on the New Shepard 20 flight in 2022. “I’m doing this for all the young women out there that think that they can’t do it. Who think that can’t have a job in space. I want to inspire as many people as I possibly can,” Kitchen said.

This is the 26th mission and eighth human flight for Jeff Bezos’ company’s New Shepard program. Since its first launch in 2021, the program has taken 43 passengers to outer space.

Watch the launch here:

We’re at T-2 minutes and counting. Watch the #NS26 crew fly to space here. ? https://t.co/Q84q688ySX

— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) August 29, 2024