World's first wheelchair user to travel to space, Michaela Benthaus sets world record
Houston, Texas, United States--German aerospace engineer Michaela "Michi" Benthaus, made history on a Blue Origin suborbital flight, after her historic ten-minute journey aboard the New Shepard capsule, fulfilling her childhood dream and demonstrating increased accessibility in space tourism and setting the record for the World's first wheelchair user to travel to space, according to the WORLD RECORD ACADEMY.
"The first wheelchair user to go to space is German aerospace engineer Michaela "Michi" Benthaus, who made history in December 2025 on a Blue Origin suborbital flight, fulfilling her childhood dream and demonstrating increased accessibility in space tourism.
"Her historic ten-minute journey aboard the New Shepard capsule passed the Kármán line, the edge of space, proving that people with disabilities can achieve spaceflight dreams." (AI Overview)
Key Details:
- Who: Michaela Benthaus, an engineer for the European Space Agency with paraplegia from a spinal cord injury.
- When: December 20, 2025.
- Where: West Texas, aboard a Blue Origin New Shepard rocket.
- Significance: Her flight, part of Blue Origin's effort to expand space access, opened doors for other disabled individuals and highlighted the need for inclusive space exploration.
- Experience: Benthaus described it as the "coolest experience," enjoying weightlessness and the view, and aims to inspire others to pursue their dream/
"An engineer from Germany has become the world's first wheelchair user to go into space. Michaela Benthaus, who suffered a spinal cord injury in a mountain bike accident seven years ago, had reached out to a retired space engineer online to see if her dream of being an astronaut was still possible," the
BBC reports.
"He then helped organise the historic 10-minute flight with Blue Origin, the space tourism company founded by Jeff Bezos. He then helped organise the historic 10-minute flight with Blue Origin, the space tourism company founded by Jeff Bezos."
"Michaela Michi Benthaus is a German astronaut and mechatronics, aerospace engineer. In December 2025, she became the first wheelchair user to travel to space. She works for the European Space Agency.
"She had a major mountain biking accident in 2018 at the age of 26 and it permanently made her unable to walk freely due to a spinal cord injury.[3] The status of her medical condition was later revealed as being diagnosed with paraplegia. Since then, she has been a full time wheelchair user. She was enrolled in a graduate trainee program of European Space Agency in the Netherlands.
"In 2025, she was accompanied by fellow German engineer Hans Koenigsmann in her ambitious mission to fly in outer space.[7] It was revealed that Benthaus herself personally reached out to Hans Koenigsmann on examining the possibilities of whether she could realise her dream of being an astronaut.[2] Benthaus received required training arrangements and special attention inside the Blue Origin capsule under the supervision of Hans Koenigsmann.[8] She was onboard as one of the crew members of the sub-orbital spaceflight Blue Origin NS-37. (Wikipedia)
"German engineer
Michaela Benthaus, who has paraplegia, traveled to space with Jeff Bezos' company Blue Origin. Also on board were former space engineer Hans Königsmann of Germany and four US entrepreneurs," the
DW reports.
"The passengers experienced a brief moment of weightlessness as part of the trip. Dozens of people have traveled to space with Blue Origin, including pop singer Katy Perry and former Star Trek actor William Shatner. The firm aims to compete with Elon Musk's SpaceX
"Benthaus sustained a spinal injury during a mountain bike accident at the age of 26 and now uses a wheelchair. She called for the world to improve accessibility for people with disabilities."
"Michaela “Michi” Benthaus, a 33-year-old aerospace engineer from Germany, just made history as the first wheelchair user to travel to space," the Smithsonian Magazine reports.
"Benthaus joined a roughly ten-minute commercial flight aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard spacecraft that launched from West Texas on December 20. The crew capsule passed the Kármán Line—the boundary between the Earth’s atmosphere and outer space located around 62 miles above the planet’s surface—and then turned back."
"New Shepard is a fully reusable sub-orbital launch vehicle developed for space tourism by Blue Origin. The vehicle is named after Alan Shepard, for being the first American to travel into space, also being the fifth person to walk on the Moon.
"The vehicle is capable of vertical takeoff and landings. Additionally, it is also capable of carrying humans and customer payloads into a sub-orbital trajectory. New Shepard consists of a launch rocket and a crew capsule. The capsule can be configured to house up to six passengers, cargo, or a combination of both.
"The launch rocket is powered by one BE-3PM engine, which sends the capsule above the Kármán line, where passengers and cargo can experience a few minutes of weightlessness before the capsule returns to Earth." (Wikipedia)
Photos: World's first wheelchair user to travel to space, Michaela Benthaus sets world record
(1) Current Affairs
(3) Participant in "AstroAccess": Michaela Benthaus before the launch of the 18 parabolas in the "ZERO G" aircraft in Houston./TUM
(4) In weightlessness: Michaela Benthaus on a parabolic flight together with former NASA astronaut Dr Cady Coleman (left)./TUM
Related world records:
