A bizarre gaffe has ignited online conspiracy theories about Katy Perry‘s flight into space with Blue Origin. 

After the New Shepard capsule landed, Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos proudly wrenched open the hatch with a specialised tool to greet the all-female crew.

However, footage from just minutes earlier clearly shows the capsule door being opened from the inside before being hastily shut.

Internet-dwelling conspiracy theorists have seized on this strange moment, hailing it as ‘definitive proof’ the mission was faked.

While there is little doubt that the Blue Origin rocket reached space, it shows just how tightly choreographed the staged event was supposed to be.  

On X, formerly Twitter, one sceptical commenter wrote: ‘I’d say this is the nail in the coffin. FAKE!’

As the claim that the mission was an elaborate hoax goes viral, experts say that the Blue Origin launch was a ‘perfect storm’ for conspiracy theories.

Dr Daniel Jolley, an expert on the psychology of conspiracies from the University of Nottingham told MailOnline: ‘Space is vast, complex, and largely inaccessible to most people – in this context, it becomes easier for some individuals to question the official narrative.’

On X, many commenters who already had their doubts about the launch have seized this embarrassing door gaffe as a clear sign their theories are correct.

One commenter wrote: ‘It was fake. The girls opened the door to begin with from the inside with no tools.’

They added: ‘They then waited a few minutes, and Jeff Bezos stepped up with some sort of tool and acted like he unlocked the latch.’

Another commenter chimed in: ‘Can’t post this fake s*** enough. Doore opens from the inside, they’re told to close it because the door can ONLY be opened by an outside person.’

While one commenter wrote: ‘This s*** is so fake. Watch the door be opened from the inside; then they need a tool to open it from the outside.’

The main reason theorists latched onto this detail was the belief that the pressurised cabin shouldn’t have an inward opening door that could be operated by passengers.

Typical spacecraft have doors that open outwards and require a team of technicians working from the outside to unlock.

For example, anyone who watched the return of NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams would have seen a crew of engineers working for minutes to open the hatch of their SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.

In comparison, the relatively easy manner in which the New Shepard capsule door was opened has inflamed suspicions.  

On X, one commenter complained: ‘Doesn’t look like a pressurised hatch to me more like a flimsy door.’

While another wrote: ‘Pretty sure pressurised doors don’t open inwards the capsule looks like its an inflatable tent and the only footage they showed was the “weightlessness” part which you can achieve in a plane.’

But that wasn’t the only detail of the landing that online theorists took issue with.

In particular, many commenters were confused by the fact that the capsule looked almost perfectly clean and unblemished after landing. 

One commenter wrote: ‘The trip was faked. Aside from the faked door opening by Overlord Bezos, the paint on the capsule isn’t even slightly scorched from reentry.’ 

Yet most of these issues can be explained by the fact that the New Shepard capsule only barely made it into space. 

The crew capsule hit a maximum altitude of 66.5 miles (107 km) which just put them over the Karman Line, the official boundary of space.

At this altitude, the capsule was still within a very thin atmosphere and wasn’t exposed to the true vacuum of space like craft travelling to the International Space Sation are. 

This means it isn’t necessary for New Shepard to have extremely well-reinforced outward-opening doors like the Crew Dragon.

And, since it barely left the atmosphere, the capsule’s return from Earth doesn’t create the heat of a typical re-entry burn that would scorch the exterior.  

Likewise, since the Apollo 1 disaster in which a capsule burst into flames on the launch pad, it has been standard practice for capsules to be openable from both sides.

In fact, NASA’s safety requirements specifically state ‘doors shall be operable by a single crew member in no more than 60 seconds, from both sides of the hatch’.

Once the capsule had depressurised upon landing, that means there was nothing stopping Katy Perry and Lauren Sanchez from opening the door from inside.

The more likely explanation for the hurried closure is simply that they had spoiled a photo opportunity with Jeff Bezos opening the door from the outside.

However, the involvement of big-name celebrities like Katy Perry and the billionaire Jeff Bezos also attracted a more intensely paranoid strain of conspiracy.

Many commenters on X believed that the mission was part of an elaborate satanic or occult ritual led by Katy Perry.

On X, one commenter wrote: ‘Katy Perry one of the biggest industries occult promoter is one of the signs this is fake.

Another added: ‘Satanic rituals in the middle of Passover to show they mock God what else would Katy Perry and co be doing at the week of Passover?’

While one commenter wrote: ‘Katy Perry has been part of the Satan scandal bs for a while now. Ask why… why these women? Why all female? Why space?’

In particular, conspiracy theorists focused their attention on the mission patch worn by all members of the New Shepard Crew.

This patch shows a rocket rising past women’s faces on a starry background, but some social media users believe it contains a satanic message.

One commenter wrote: ‘Did you notice the logo on Katy Perry and her fellow Blue Origin Space travellers’ patch is the satanic goat with an upside down cross if you flip it over?’ 

While another claimed that during the mission Katy Perry and her crewmates performed a ‘sick ritual wearing baphomet clothing’.

However, Dr Jolley explains that this is not an entirely new conspiracy theory. 

He says: ‘It ties into longstanding fears about hidden evil among the powerful, which go back centuries. 

In the internet age, these old tropes have taken new forms, often blending religious imagery with more modern anxieties about control, manipulation, and media influence.’

‘Space missions have historically attracted scepticism – from moon landing denial to flat Earth claims – while celebrities are frequently drawn into narratives involving secret societies and hidden agendas,’ Dr Jolley explains. 

In reality, at 14:30 BST (08:30 local time), the NS-31 mission launched from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One, about 30 miles north of Van Horn, Texas.

On board were Jeff Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sánchez, pop star Katy Perry, CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, activist Amanda Nguyen, and former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe.

After liftoff, the New Shepard rocket carried the crew capsule just over the Karman Line, a boundary used to define the edge of space.

After enjoying a few minutes of weightlessness, the capsule fell back to Earth and landed safely just 11 minutes after liftoff.

But when the mystery of space meets the presence of celebrities and a widely disliked billionaire, it creates a natural breeding ground for conspiracy. 

Professor Karen Douglas, an expert on conspiracy theories from the University of Kent, told MailOnline: ‘Psychological research suggests that people are attracted to conspiracy theories when one or more fundamental psychological needs are frustrated. 

‘The first of these needs are epistemic, related to the need to know the truth and have clarity and certainty.’

When things like the unexpected opening of the capsule door aren’t explained, people will turn to alternative theories to provide that certainty.

Professor Douglas says: ‘People are looking for ways to understand what is going on and they don’t like the uncertainty that often surrounds unfolding events. 

‘This perspective essentially means that anyone can fall into conspiracy theories if the circumstances are right.’