German Engineer Makes History as First Wheelchair User to Reach Space
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Michaela Benthaus became first wheelchair user reaching space aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard, completing 10-minute suborbital flight.
- Blue Origin required minimal modifications—ground equipment changes like benches and elevator—proving accessible spaceflight design benefits wider populations.
- Benthaus advocates inclusive society across all sectors; ESA also cleared amputee astronaut John McFall for future International Space Station mission.
Breaking Barriers Beyond Earth's Atmosphere
Michaela Benthaus, a 33-year-old German aerospace and mechatronics engineer at the European Space Agency, just became the first wheelchair user ever to travel past the Kármán Line — a common demarcation for outer space that lies 100 kilometers (62 miles) above sea level. Her history-making trip aboard a Blue Origin New Shepard capsule took flight on Saturday morning, lifting off from the company's launch facilities near Van Horn, Texas.
Benthaus, a lifelong adventurer, damaged her spinal cord in a 2018 mountain biking incident. She told CNN her enthusiasm for space exploration grew from there, as she focused her passions on engineering and research challenges she could tackle while relying on a wheelchair for mobility. "I always wanted to go to space, but I never really considered it something which I could actually do," Benthaus told CNN ahead of the flight.
An ecstatic Benthaus said she laughed all the way up and tried to turn upside down in space. "It was the coolest experience," she said shortly after landing. Her flight aboard New Shepard lasted around 10 minutes, as the rocket fired its engines to propel Benthaus and her five crewmates to more than three times the speed of sound and soar past the Kármán Line.
Engineering Accessibility for Space Travel
The 10-minute space-skimming flight required only minor adjustments to accommodate Benthaus, according to the company. That's because the autonomous New Shepard capsule was designed with accessibility in mind, "making it more accessible to a wider range of people than traditional spaceflight," said Blue Origin's Jake Mills, an engineer who trained the crew and assisted them on launch day.
He said there were no modifications to the New Shepard vehicle itself, but the company made changes to ground equipment. Those included benches Benthaus used to maneuver through the capsule door and into and out of her seat, as well as the installation of an elevator at the launch pad. Benthaus told CNN in a preflight interview that she planned to use a special strap to keep her legs bound as she exited her seat to enjoy microgravity and peer out the window for a singular view of Earth.
A fellow German by birth and a naturalized U.S. citizen, Koenigsmann helped arrange Benthaus' flight after meeting her last year. "I met Hans the first time online," Benthaus said in a Blue Origin interview. "I just asked him, like, you know, you worked for so long for SpaceX, do you think that people like me can be astronauts? "Then he reached out to Blue Origin and told me oh, Blue actually is very excited about it.
Opening New Frontiers for Inclusion
Benthaus said in the video that she felt a responsibility as the first wheelchair user to fly to space. "If we want to be an inclusive society, we should be inclusive in every part, and not only in the parts that we like to be," she said. Her goal is to make not only space accessible to the disabled, but to improve accessibility on Earth too.
It's a private mission for Benthaus with no involvement by ESA, which this year cleared reserve astronaut John McFall, an amputee, for a future flight to the International Space Station. The former British Paralympian lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident when he was a teenager. Independent research led by biomechanics professor Jesse Rhoades at the University of North Dakota timed able-bodied participants and veterans with prosthetic legs exiting capsule mockups at NASA's Johnson Space Center. Published this year in Acta Astronautica, the study found participants with below-knee amputations were only a few seconds slower than able-bodied peers; all tested participants exited in under a minute, indicating mobility impairments need not materially slow emergency egress.
"You should never give up on your dreams, right?" Benthaus urged following touchdown. Her achievement represents more than personal triumph—it demonstrates how thoughtful design and determination can expand humanity's reach beyond Earth, proving that space exploration truly can be for everyone.