A group of famous faces soared to the edge of space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket on Monday morning, and while their flight was short, the internet’s reaction lasted all day.

 

Pop star Katy Perry, journalist Gayle King, Jeff Bezos’ fiancée Lauren Sánchez, and other accomplished women like Amanda Nguyen and Aisha Bowe were part of an all-female crew that flew at Mach 3 and experienced weightlessness before returning safely to Earth.

 

The moment was emotional for American host Oprah Winfrey, who watched her longtime friend Gayle King overcome her fear of flying and called the experience a powerful personal breakthrough.

 

Katy Perry described the journey as “one of the most meaningful experiences” of her life and even sang a classic tune in space to celebrate love and unity. She and Gayle King both kissed the ground after landing, overwhelmed with emotion.

 

While the celebrities basked in the glory of their milestone, X (formerly Twitter) users were quick to bring them back to Earth with sarcasm, memes, and plenty of jokes.

 

One user wrote, “Please stop calling them astronauts. That is SO insulting to the brave men and women that train for space flight. They were space tourists lol.”

 

Another added, “This is as silly as that forced girl power moment in Avengers Endgame.”

 

Environmental concerns were also raised. “Space tourism isn’t progress. It’s privilege with a jetpack,” said one user. “This is climate vandalism, dressed as innovation.”

 

Others questioned priorities: “If we can afford to send rich people to space for a 5-minute joy ride, we can afford to pay for school lunches and house our veterans,” one viral post read.

 

Some didn’t hold back at all, “Girl power? No, just PR power. Billionaires launching their friends for headlines,” one comment said.