Custom Patch Unveiled in Preparation for New Shepard’s NS-34 Mission

Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin is gearing up to send its 14th crew to space, setting a tentative launch date of August 3 and revealing its symbolic mission patch. This will be the 34th flight in the New Shepard rocket program.

The six-person civilian crew will climb above the Kármán line: the 62-mile boundary that technically qualifies as “space”. Their trip will go aboard a reusable rocket that’s gotten more than a few crews through the atmosphere in one piece.

Just over three minutes after launch, the capsule will separate from the booster, giving the passengers a few weightless minutes to float, snap photos, and reflect on their place in the universe before reentry and parachute-assisted touchdown.

This time’s lineup includes a global mix: Arvi Bahal, a pilot and adventurer who has skydived over Mount Everest; Gökhan Erdem, a Turkish businessman with dreams of reaching the ISS someday; Deborah Martorell, a Puerto Rican meteorologist with eight Emmys; Lionel Pitchford, an educator and nonprofit founder who’s spent years working in Nepal; and J.D. Russell, who flew on a previous New Shepard mission and is returning with a foundation dedicated to his daughter’s memory.

The final member is crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun - the same guy who paid $28 million for the very first seat on New Shepard back in 2021. He didn’t fly then, but the donation went to Blue Origin’s education nonprofit.

To mark the occasion, Blue Origin unveiled the NS-34 mission patch, which features a mix of symbolic elements that range from a banana for Sun’s “passion for conceptual art” to Mt. Everest, a globe, and a book referencing each astronaut’s background and causes.

While the rocket does the usual 10-minute suborbital hop, Blue Origin continues building its roster of civilian space travelers—70 so far, including four repeat flyers.

The NS-34 mission will be streamed live starting 30 minutes before liftoff.

FMI www.blueorigin.com