The countdown is on for an all-woman space crew as they plan to blast off April 14. Six influential women, including singer-songwriter Katy Perry and CBS Morning talk show host Gayle King, will board the first all-female spaceflight since 1963. The brief but thrilling trip, which will last about 11 minutes, will take the crew above the Kármán Line, where they will experience a few moments of weightlessness. The launch is set to take place in West Texas aboard Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin spacecraft. 

Why a trip into outer space, you may ask? In short, to show progress and inclusivity in space travel. It has been almost 60 years since the last all-woman crew went into space. This lack of inclusivity wasn’t because of a lack of interest from women but because women were seen unfit and physically unsuited for space travel. In 1962, before the first women went to space, members of Mercury 13, a group of 13 women pilots who all qualified to fly in space but were unable to because of their gender, testified against Congress about women being allowed to travel in space. Three of these women testified against three male astronauts who argued women were not suitable enough for the space program. The barriers women faced in the ’60s are still present, and the passengers aboard this upcoming flight are hoping to show women are just as capable as men or any other gender identity in space travel. 

Here are a few facts about how the star-studded crew is preparing for the out-of-this-world experience: 

Meditation and space simulations 

In an interview with ELLE magazine, King shared that learning to meditate is one way she’s prepared herself for the flight and calmed her anxiety. Aisha Bowe, former NASA rocket scientist and another member of the crew, has prepared in a different way: space simulation. Bowe shared with ELLE that she completed a NASTAR simulation, where she was able to experience things she may encounter on the flight, such as what it feels like on the trip up. These techniques have helped the space crew prepare for their brief moments in zero gravity. 

Training camp 

Going into space is not something one does on a daily basis, so with this task comes a lot of training. The crew will gather a few days before the launch to make sure they are comfortable with all aspects of flight before take off. A final training session will be held to focus on educating the crewmates on where they will be sitting and provide them a fully accurate test capsule. The members and the Blue Origin team aim for everyone to feel and be as prepared as possible for this experience.

Bringing glamour to the stars 

If you expected an all-female crew to launch into space without looking their best, you guessed wrong! Perry said in her ELLE interview that “space is going to finally be glam.” Pre-takeoff, the crew will be testing their hairstyles and make-up, emphasizing that they do not have to change their expression of their womanhood to be fit for space travel. Amanda Nguyen, a civil rights activist and bioastronautics research scientist who is part of the crew, shared with ELLE that she believes it’s important for people to see the crew as “this dichotomy of engineer and scientist, and then beauty and fashion. We contain multitudes. Women are multitudes. I’m going to be wearing lipstick.”