First Black Astronaut Candidate Then, Oldest Person in Space Now

The United States’s first black astronaut candidate has also just become the oldest person to go to space.

Ed Dwight, a former Air Force captain, was among the six people on board a recent space mission on Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket. “Fantastic! A life-changing experience. Eveyone needs to do this!” he exclaims, upon exiting the rocket.

Dwight was selected to be an astronaut candidate by President John F. Kennedy in 1961; however, he was never admitted into NASA’s astronaut training program and spent decades in various other career paths. Over 60 years after becoming the United States’s first Black astronaut candidate, Dwight made it to space. His eleven-minute visit officially makes him the oldest person to ever go to space at 90. So far, Blue Origin rockets have transported 37 people into space since its debut in 2021.