From wheels to stars: Mikaela Benthaus blasts off into history with Blue Origin

Texas (The Uttam Hindu): It is said that if the spirit is high, physical disabilities never come in the way of dreams. Engineer Mikaela Benthaus has proved this to be true. 33-year-old Mikaela, who lives on a wheelchair, has created a new history by touching the heights of space. Despite having paraplegia (dependence on a wheelchair due to spinal injury), she has become the first woman to go to space. The New Shepard rocket of world's leading industrialist Jeff Bezos' company 'Blue Origin' took her 100 kilometers above the Earth to the point where gravity becomes completely ineffective.

Blue Origin's 16th manned mission (NS-37) took off from West Texas at 8:15 am. Mikaela was accompanied on this historic journey by former space engineer Hans Königsmann and four other American entrepreneurs. During this thrilling journey, which lasted approximately 11 minutes, the spacecraft reached an altitude of 100 kilometers (62 miles), known as the Karman Line. Upon reaching there, the passengers experienced a moment of weightlessness, or zero gravity. This flight has become not just a technological breakthrough, but an example of inclusiveness and human resilience.

This achievement was not easy for Mikaela, who works as an engineer in the European Space Agency (ESA). At the age of just 26, she suffered a serious spinal cord injury in a terrible accident while mountain biking, after which she has been in a wheelchair. But she did not give up. After her successful comeback, an emotional Mikaela said that this was the most wonderful experience of her life. Giving a message to the world, she said that one should never give up on one's dreams, no matter how slim the chances are. While sharing her experience, she also appealed to the world to increase facilities for disabled people and make the society more inclusive.

This mission by Jeff Bezos's company, Blue Origin, is considered a major step toward space tourism. The company's goal is to make space travel accessible to the general public and to give Elon Musk's SpaceX a run for its money. Previously, Blue Origin has flown celebrities like pop singer Katy Perry and Star Trek actor William Shatner into space. Mikaela's flight proves that space is no longer limited to a select few, but rather open to anyone with the passion to reach the skies.