UPDATE: The Blue Origin flight Jim Kitchen is set to participate in has been delayed from March 23 to March 29.
After traveling to all 193 countries recognized by the United Nations, UNC professor and Chapel Hill entrepreneur Jim Kitchen is set to now achieve another lifelong dream.
Blue Origin, a commercial space flight company and aerospace manufacturer, announced Monday that Kitchen is among its next cohort to leave Earth and take flight into the upper atmosphere on March 23. The latest launch of Blue Origin’s New Shepard program will include Kitchen and five others: angel investor Marty Allen, comedian and ‘Saturday Night Live’ cast member Pete Davidson, the philanthropist husband and wife duo Sharon and Marc Hagle, and President of Commercial Space Technologies Dr. George Nield.
In an interview with Chapelboro, Kitchen described his excitement to learning his inclusion in the next Blue Origin flight.
“One of my earliest childhood memories is sitting in my mom’s lap and watching an Apollo launch lift off the coast of Florida,” said Kitchen. “It lit up the sky and shook the earth and at that point in time, I wanted to be an astronaut.
“Now to be on the verge of going to space,” he added, “and paying homage to that little boy sitting in his mom’s lap and to those professional astronauts who blazed the trail to where we are now, it’s very touching. I’m just so humbled and excited.”
Kitchen is a professor in UNC’s Kenan Flagler Business School, but started a marketing and travel business when he was a student himself at Chapel Hill. He said some of the first travels his company promoted were low-orbit space trips. Kitchen said his Carolina peers would tease him about the business, but he wished to sell enough space trips to eventually take one himself.
After traveling the world, Kitchen feels like there is still one frontier to explore. As Blue Origin began its passenger flights in 2021, which take civilians and research payloads to the recognized boundary of space, the Chapel Hillian said he felt compelled to apply. Kitchen attempted a grassroots campaign earlier that year to try and secure a spot on a SpaceX flight sending two contest winners up to space.
He said his desire for space travel extends to even his marriage, with Kitchen and his wife of 24 years including a stipulation about him flying to space in their pre-nuptial agreement.
“We’ve talked about it a dozen times since about how silly that was,” Kitchen told Chapelboro. “And here we are now and it’s actually real. [My wife Susan] is so excited for me, as are my kids [and my UNC students.] I’ve been hearing from them all morning.”
The crew of Blue Origin’s NS-20 flight, set to launch on March 23. (Photo via Blue Origin.)
Having learned and processed the news, Kitchen said he is 80 percent excited, 20 percent in denial and 0 percent nervous about his upcoming trip. While he’s only met the other members of the NS-20 crew over video calls, the next step will be flying to Texas to complete four days of preparation for the near 11-minute flight.
“It’s pretty intensive training to get us ready to know everything about the launch vehicle, all of the safety procedures and all of that,” said Kitchen. “It’s a very thorough and exhaustive training program.”
Kitchen said Blue Origin’s efforts mark an exciting period of early space tourism. He said the fact that he’ll be joining the more than 620 people who have been to space, compared to the 108 billion people who have lived on Earth, is not lost on him.
“I’m most excited about looking out those big windows, from 65 miles [in the air] right at the edge of space, and seeing a big borderless planet,” said Kitchen. “My parents were public school teachers and they always shared with me this dream of doing more, of pushing boundaries. My journeys around the world have been such testament to that…that anything is possible.”
The launch of Blue Origin’s NS-20 flight is set for Wednesday, March 23 in West Texas around 9:30 a.m. EDT
Editor’s Note: Kitchen is a co-owner of the Chapel Hill Media Group, which consists of 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro.com.
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our biweekly newsletter.
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines