What is Blue Origin door conspiracy theory? Skeptics claim it is proof that Katy Perry and Gayle King's space trip was fake

On April 14, a crew of five women went on a space trip in a Blue Origin rocket. The team included Katy Perry, Gayle King, Lauren Sánchez, Amanda Nguyen, Aisha Bowe, and film producer Kerianne Flynn. Meanwhile, a new conspiracy theory has popped up claiming that the trip was fake.

When the New Shepard capsule landed, Jeff Bezos was seen opening its hatch with a specialised tool. However, a footage went viral showing the door being slightly opened before that, and then getting shut immediately. This prompted many netizens take to X, and claim that the trip was a hoax.

An expert on the psychology of conspiracies from the University of Nottingham, Dr Daniel Jolley, told The Daily Mail:

"Space is vast, complex and largely inaccessible to most people - in this context, it becomes easier for some individuals to question the official narrative."

Skeptics claimed on the internet that the women seemingly opened the door from inside without any tools, proving that the space trip never happened. Many skeptics also claimed that the body of the capsule should have turned black when it landed, but it came out spotless. A netizen wrote on X:

"When the capsule gets back to earth due to Oxygen in atmosphere it burns, so the outside of capsule should be black. It’s spotless white🤫🤭."

Another netizen tweeted:

"The Blue Origin New Shepard crew capsule’s hatch is designed to be opened from the outside by the recovery team after landing, as a safety measure to ensure controlled and secure egress."

Such comments have flooded the social media platform. As of now, no response has been obtained from Blue Origin, clarifying the conspiracy theories.

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"I just want to have a moment with the ground," said Gayle King after landing in the Blue Origin rocket

The six-woman space crew was welcomed by Jeff Bezos, who was seen opening the door of the capsule. The first one to exit the capsule was Jeff's fiancée, Lauren Sánchez, followed by singer Katy Perry and Gayle King. Upon exiting the capsule, Gayle kissed the ground and said:

"I just want to have a moment with the ground, just appreciate the ground for just a second."

Amanda Nguyen, Aisha Bowe, and Kerianne Flynn then exited the capsule and seemed quite content with the experience. Several celebrities were also present there to witness the launch of the Blue Origin rocket carrying the women.

This included Oprah, Khloé Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Katy's fiancé Orlando Bloom, and daughter Daisy, as well as NASA astronaut Mae Jemison. As per reports by the BBC, Oprah revealed that Gayle had been a nervous flier. She further said:

"I mean, for her—whew—anytime we're on a flight, she's in somebody's lap at the slightest bit of turbulence. She has real, real-world anxiety when it comes to flying. And this... this is her overcoming a wall of fear."

While the all-women crew revealed having a content experience, many criticized this space trip. One of them was Dr Kai-Uwe Schrogl, special advisor for political affairs at the European Space Agency. Schrogl told the BBC that while the experience could be exciting for the celebrities, it might be frustrating for the space scientists.

Meanwhile, Blue Origin has not commented on the criticism as of now.