US-based Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA) on Monday announced India as a partner nation in their groundbreaking human spaceflight programme
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SERA will offer citizens from across the world six seats on a future mission of New Shepard, Blue Origin's reusable suborbital rocket
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Notably, an Indian citizen can also participate in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
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Interested Indians can register for the programme by paying $2.50 (Rs 209) fee, which will cover verification checks
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The final astronaut from India will be selected after a public vote and the person will have to meet some physical requirements
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They can attract votes by telling their story to the public using their mission profile pages, social media, and other resources
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The selected astronauts will undergo a three-day training program at Blue Origin's launch site in West Texas prior to their flight
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New Shepard will then fly the astronauts on an 11-minute journey past the Karman line (100 km), the internationally recognised boundary of space
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The astronauts will experience several minutes of weightlessness before making a controlled descent back to the landing pad
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This collaboration aims to make space travel accessible for all, and to offer people from countries that have sent few or no citizen astronauts to space