Keisha Schahaff and Anastatia Mayers are a mother-daughter duo on a mission. The pair is set to make history as the first Caribbeans to travel to space according to PEOPLE. Both are Antiguan citizens and will be a part of Virgin Galactic’s second commercial space flight, dubbed Galactic 02, next month.
Schahaff is a wellness coach; her daughter is a second-year college student at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. The two won their spots in a draw that raised $1.7 million for the non-profit, Space for Humanity. Space for Humanity aims to expand access to space.
“When I was two years old, just looking up to the skies, I thought, ‘How can I get there?’ But, being from the Caribbean, I didn’t see how something like this would be possible,” Schahaff said in a news release for Virgin Galactic. “The fact that I am here, the first to travel to space from Antigua, shows that space really is becoming more accessible.”
Schahaff added that she knows she will be changed by the experience. With her voyage onboard Galactic 02, Mayers will also earn the distinction of being the second youngest passenger to travel to space.
Other Passengers Joining Keisha Schahaff and Anastatia Mayers
80-year-old passenger Jon Goodwin will join the duo. Goodwin will be the first Olympian and second individual with Parkinson’s Disease to make the journey to the stars. Virgin Galatic Chief Astronaut Instructor Beth Moses will accompany the group. Moses has made the journey three times. In 2019, she was the first passenger on the company’s space plane.
About ‘Galactic 02’
The trip will last at least 90 minutes and reach a whooping speed of 2,600 MPH. The ship will reach the edge of space and experience “incredible views.” According to CNN, Virgin Galactic has sold around 800 flight tickets. Six hundred tickets are priced at $250,000, and two hundred at $450,000.
Earlier this year, a group of Italian researchers took the same trip to space, hoping to bring commercial spaceflight to everyone.