The first woman ever to venture into space, Valentina Tereshkova, has undoubtedly earned her name amongst the stars. However, in contrast to her trailblazing male counterparts, the first civilian cosmonaut seems to have faded into obscurity – a fate belying many of the women who have contributed to space exploration. The recent announcement of the first all-female crew on a Blue Origin expedition looks to change that.

Known as NS-31, the mission brings together pop star Katy Perry, journalist Gayle King, and film producer Kerrianne Flynne. They will be joined by former NASA scientist Aisha Bowe, bioastronautics researcher Amanda Nguyen, and finally Lauren Sánchez, pilot and coordinator of this project. Highlighting not only the progress that has been made in gender representation, there is no doubt NS-31 will also expand the conversation surrounding space sustainability and the growing space market, as well as the potential risks that accompany our pursuit of the stars.

“62 years after Tereshkova’s solo voyage, a new space race is in full force”

62 years after Tereshkova’s solo voyage, a new space race is in full force, helmed by space barons and their multi-billion dollar corporations. The face of modern spaceflight has morphed from that of a fatigued, government-driven industry into a rigorous, profit-propelled enterprise. Projected by Morgan Stanley to reach 1 trillion dollars by 2040, this burgeoning market could not have transformed without the contributions of daring female figures throughout history.

Long before the era of space tourism, Tereshkova’s parachuting hobby would land her in the Soviet Air Force, aged only 24. Having piloted the ‘Vostok 6’ mission, she then returned to a life of public diplomacy. 19 years would pass before Svetlana Savitskaya became the second woman to travel to space on the Soyuz T-7 Mission. Not only the first woman to make the journey twice, but also the first to spacewalk, she would inspire generations of women after her, including one Mae Jemison. Across the Atlantic, Jemison donned her own spacesuit to become the first African American woman in space. Over forty different experiments were conducted under her supervision, performing investigations in biotechnology, fluid dynamics, acceleration measurements, and space radiation.

Whilst these astronauts were busy breaching the atmosphere, countless others were working tirelessly in the control rooms of NASA. One of the ‘Hidden Figures’ of Margot Lee Shetterley’s 2016 book, which details the story of three African American women working at NASA, Katherine Johnson calculated the trajectories for the safe return of Alan Shepard and the Apollo 11 space crew. Such was her mathematical expertise that astronaut John Glenn would remark, “if [Katherine] says they’re good, then I’m ready to go.”

The legacy that precedes the Blue Origin Crew is immense. The current environmental, geopolitical, and economic climate that these six women find themselves in, however, could not be more different to that of the previous century. Rather than hostile superpowers competing over moondust, tech giants such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and Boeing are battling it out for the best seats to space.

“Today, Blue Origin’s motto of ‘gradatim ferociter’ – step by step, ferociously – captures the essence of this new space age”

Each of these companies has its own mission statement: Virgin is focused on making frequent space tourism a tangible reality; SpaceX is concentrated on reaching the Red Planet and its potential colonization. Blue Origin has centred on making space travel more accessible and sustainable via reusable suborbital rockets, a worthy endeavour considering that their liquid hydrogen and oxygen powered shuttles put the rest of the industry to shame. Interestingly, the latter two are both funded by NASA. SpaceX was recently awarded $834 million in order to help decommission the International Space Station, and Bezos struck gold with a $3.4 billion contract for the creation of the company’s lunar lander ahead of their 2029 crewed mission. At the same time, launch costs have been drastically reduced, from $18,500 to $2,720 per kg. This influx of funding, coupled with the staggering drop in costs, has given these companies no reason to slow down. Incentives are made sweeter still, given the abundance of wealthy customers willing to drop upwards of £356,000 for a 90-minute trip to space.

In his 1962 ‘We Choose to go to the Moon’ address, John F. Kennedy stated that there was “new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and [that] they must be won and used for the progress of all people.” Today, Blue Origin’s motto of ‘gradatim ferociter’ – step by step, ferociously – captures the essence of this new space age. Indeed, the focus on reusability and representation is certainly a step in the right direction.

Considering the average emission of 400 tonnes of CO2 per rocket launch and the rising atmospheric levels of black carbon, it is difficult to judge whether the benefits of commercial space travel can truly outweigh the risks. Nonetheless, we can be optimistic that, within the bounds of current space regulations, we might not have to surrender our night-sky to Starlink satellites, or risk a future WALL-E-esque landscape of space debris. Provided these entrepreneurs honour their environmental commitments, this mission may well become the first of many to show that human progress, equality, and sustainable achievements can indeed go hand-in-hand.

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