NFTs offer astronauts ‘new outlet’ to share experiences, says spaceman Scott Kelly

After celebrities, athletes, and politicians jumped into the non-fungible token (NFT) craze, the growing industry has attracted a veteran astronaut to share their time in space via NFTs.

In a Cointelegraph interview, Scott Kelly, a retired American astronaut, shared that he has a “growing curiosity” about blockchain technology and NFTs. According to Kelly, he has been keeping an eye on blockchain for six years and has seen its potential.

“I have developed a growing curiosity about how it will play a role in space development, something I would love to be a part of,” Kelly said. Because of that, the astronaut wanted to introduce himself to the NFT community and contribute to charity.

The veteran astronaut recently released an NFT collection titled Dreams Out of This World that reimagines Kelly's space journey through various digital artworks. The drop sold 3,333 NFTs and raised $500,000 in sales that will go to the non-profit Global Empowerment Mission (GEM) to help people affected by the war in Ukraine:

"The Ukraine crisis is something that is very close to my heart, so we will donate 100% of the proceeds from the initial sale through GEM to help Ukraine."

While Kelly admits there are plenty of other ways to help, the astronaut is thankful that the launch of an NFT collection has allowed him to help victims of the crisis. “I feel grateful to launch a project at a time that allows me to support them in a way that I might not have been able to do on my own,” Kelly said.

Kelly also hopes her entry into the world of NFTs will encourage other astronauts to explore the industry as well. She told Cointelegraph:

"NFTs can offer astronauts a new outlet to share their experiences instead of posting this on the internet, where it can quickly get lost in the shuffle."

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Meanwhile, a Web3 initiative called Reli3f raised $1.5 million for Ukraine relief efforts. Through its second NFT collection, the project raised funds that will be distributed to various charities focused on the Ukraine crisis.