Michael Strahan Will Travel Into Space

Former HBCU football legend and NFL Hall of Famer Michael Strahan will make history by traveling to space aboard Blue Origin New Shepard on Dec. 11, 2021.

Former NFL and Texas Southern University (HBCU) football player Michael Strahan will make history by traveling to space aboard Blue Origin New Shepard flight NS-19 on Dec. 11, 2021. Strahan is set to become the first HBCU and NFL Hall of Fame football player to ever fly in space. 

The six passengers of Blue Origin's NS-19 flight, from left: Dylan Taylor, Lane and Cameron Bess, Laura Shepard Churchley, Michael Strahan and Evan Dick. (Image credit: Blue Origin)

Blue Origin will launch the six-person crew to the edge of space in its third suborbital human flight in 2021. Jeff Bezos requested Michael Strahan to join the mission with four paying customers. The New Shepard spacecraft will include Strahan, NASA astronaut Alan Shepard's daughter Laura Shepard Churchley, and four paying passengers: Dylan Taylor, Evan Dick, and parent-child pair Lane and Cameron Bess.

Credit:© Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

HBCU LEGEND WILL MAKE SPACE TRAVEL HISTORY

Strahan should be the second retired NFL player to reach space after former wide receiver and NASA astronaut Leland Melvin made two trips on Space Shuttle Atlantis as a mission specialist (STS-122) and mission specialist 1 (STS-129). Leland Melvin spent 23 days in space over two space shuttle missions.

New Shepard crew will man the spacecraft at 8:15 AM CT and liftoff for space at 8:45 AM CT. The launch will occur at Blue Origins' Launch Site One near Van Horn, Texas.

Michael Strahan, 50, is a co-anchor of ABC's Good Morning America," host of "$100,000 Pyramid" and analyst of "Fox NFL Sunday" during the football season. Strahan will be the first former HBCU football player and the second retired NFL football player to launch into space. The Hall of Famer played defensive end for the New York Giants for 15 seasons before officially retiring in 2007. Strahan, who is 6 feet, 5 inches tall (196 cm), will become the tallest person in history to reach space.

HBCU LEGENDS IN SPACE

Former NASA astronaut Dr. Ronald McNair was the first HBCU graduate to travel into space on Feb. 3, 1984, as a mission specialist on STS-41 B aboard Challenger. He passed on Jan. 28, 1986, aboard the Challenger disaster.

TEXAS SOUTHERN AT LAUNCH

Texas Southern University will have aviation professor, Ed Pataky, and student Angel Mata at the launch to support Michael Strahan. 

HOW WILL STRAHAN TRAVEL IN SPACE

According to Space.com's Elizabeth Howell, the "New Shepard flights normally last 11 minutes and typically, at least based on the crewed flights to date, a live broadcast with the astronauts will likely be available at BlueOrigin.com."   

Strahan and his crew mates will travel over the set earth-space boundary of 62 miles (100 kilometers).