Genesis Margolis
- Two Blue Origin passengers are the first married couple to fly to space on a commercial rocket.
- Sharon and Mark Hagle told Insider they've also got plans to fly with SpaceX and Virgin Galactic.
- Sharon said she'll take Richard Branson's advice to look through the window when in zero gravity.
After swimming with humpback whales and abseiling into caves in New Zealand, Sharon and Mark Hagle are taking their adventures to the next level by flying into space.
The Hagles, both 73, are two out of six passengers on Blue Origin's 20th journey to the edge of space on March 29.
Jeff Bezos' company will launch the passengers in a capsule atop the New Shepard rocket, sending them 60 miles above Earth's surface where they'll float in zero gravity for three minutes before the capsule parachutes descends back to the ground.
In an exclusive interview with Insider, Sharon, CEO of nonprofit SpaceKids Global, and Mark, president and CEO of property development corporation Tricor International, said they were very excited for the whole experience.
"We hope we're talking to each other when we come back to earth because ... it's gonna be an experience that's going to test our fortitude," Mark joked.
However, Sharon and Mark aren't prepared to put their space travels to bed after the Blue Origin flight. "Hopefully, we can do it four times," Sharon said.
Genesis Margolis
The couple are have already signed up to Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, and are having conversations with Elon Musk's SpaceX and tourism company Space Perspective.
"If somebody else introduces it, maybe we can do it more than that," Sharon said.
The pair, who have been married 26 years, said they registered for Blue Origin flight tickets in May 2021, took part in the auction, and found out prior to Christmas that they'd been successful.
"We were under nondisclosure. Do you know how difficult it is to have this information and not be able to tell anybody?" Marc said.
The Hagles, who live in Florida, said they'll head to Blue Origin's campsite in Texas a few days before the flight for training, despite already having previous practice with zero gravity.
When the capsule reaches the edge of space and the passengers unstrap themselves from their seats, Marc and Sharon said they want to concentrate on what's going on around them so they don't lose the moment.
Jessica Garcia
"I'm going to take some feedback from my friend, Richard Branson, who said if he had it to do over again, he'd stay in his seat and look out the window," Sharon said.
The couple will also be accompanied by their dog, Saba, for part of the journey. Although he won't be flying into space, Blue Origin has designed him a spacesuit to wear around the campsite.
Doing the spaceflight together is an "extraordinary" experience, according to the Hagles.
"My thought is you go, I go," Sharon said. "Mark has always taken me out of my comfort zone."
from Business Insider https://ift.tt/iHAFNWC
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