Meet Jim Kitchen, the man who went to space with Ukrainian flag after visiting 193 countries of the world
India Today
A space dreamer since childhood, Jim Kitchen went to space on Thursday, carrying with him Ukraine’s national flag to show his support for the conflict-ridden country amid the ongoing Russian invasion.
A space dreamer since childhood, Jim Kitchen’s wish to be in space came true on Thursday when he, along with five other crew members, went on a brief ride outside the planet on the New Shepard spacecraft launched by Jeff Bezos-led Blue Origin.
Currently a professor at the University of North Carolina, his passion for space travel was ignited when he had watched NASA’s Apollo Rocket launch in Florida, US when he was a child.
His interest in space tourism continued even in college, where he promoted low Earth orbit space trips for a startup.
Apart from his interest in space travel, Kitchen is also a globetrotter who has visited over 193 countries in the world over the years.
On his trip to space, he carried 10 passports with him, including the one that had Ukrainian stamps on it.
Kitchen had also brought the Ukrainian flag with him to show his support for the people of Ukraine amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
The New Shepard spacecraft had taken them on a brief joyride outside the Earth, 100 kilometers above the surface of the planet, with the journey lasting for over 10 minutes. The passengers had unbuckled and floated in zero gravity for a few moments as the spacecraft touched the Karaman line, which is designated as the boundary of space.
