Entertainment Books Non-Fiction Books Jeff Bezos and Partner Lauren Sánchez Hold Hands Before William Shatner's Historic Space Launch Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are spending time together in Texas ahead of William Shatner’s trip to space, which has been delayed by a day due to weather By Maria Pasquini Maria Pasquini Maria Pasquini is the staff editor for human interest’s digital vertical at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2017. People Editorial Guidelines Published on October 11, 2021 02:14PM EDT Lauren Sánchez and Jeff Bezos. Photo: Lauren Sanchez/Instagram Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are looking forward to William Shatner's big day! On Monday, the Emmy-winning journalist, 51, shared a photograph of herself and the Amazon billionaire, 57, holding hands after arriving in Texas, where Shatner will soon become the oldest person to blast off to space. "Boots on the ground in Texas for @blueorigin launch," she captioned the snap. "Can't wait!" Sánchez also made the trip to Texas in July to celebrate her partner's own successful trip to space, which marked the first space flight with humans on board for Bezos' aerospace company Blue Origin. "I wasn't that nervous, but my family was somewhat anxious about this and so it was so sweet actually to get hugged by them after landing, especially my kids and Lauren," he said at the time of his partner, with whom he went public in January 2019. (L-R) Lauren Sánchez and Jeff Bezos. Prodip Guha/Getty The couple's arrival in Texas this week came after Blue Origin announced that Shatner's history-making space mission would be delayed by a day. "Due to forecasted winds in West Texas we are pushing #NS18 launch target to Wednesday, October 13," they wrote on Twitter, adding that lift off was tentatively scheduled for 8:30 a.m. local time. Jeff Bezos' 'Toxic' Blue Origin Puts 'Competing with Other Billionaires' Over Safety: Employees Opening up about the change on Good Morning America Monday, the Star Trek actor said that although he was "deeply disappointed," the trip would be worth the wait. "I'm deeply disappointed because I was building up the enthusiastic response, now we have to wait another day," he said. "[But] it's really worth it. What's a day with this extraordinary experience that we're about to have?" Joining the star on the NS-18 mission will be Audrey Powers, Blue Origin's Vice President of Mission and Flight Operations. Crew members Chris Boshuizen and Glen de Vries will also be on board the flight. "I've heard about space for a long time now," Shatner previously said in a statement. "I'm taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle." Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. However, Shatner is aware of the risk that comes with the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. "I'm terrified," he joked while speaking at a New York Comic Con panel last week, days after the exciting news was announced. "I'm Captain Kirk, and I'm terrified going to space," he added. "You know, I'm not really terrified. Yes, I am. It comes and goes like a summer cold." As for how the mission came to be, Shatner explained during the panel that his friend, Better Late Than Never producer Jason Ehrlich, first brought up the idea. Inspiration4 Reveal They Felt the 'Overview Effect' in Space — What to Know About the Phenomenon "So [Jason] came to me about a year and a half ago and he said, you know, they're starting to send these rockets up with people into space," Shatner recalled. "Wouldn't it be something if Captain Kirk went up there? And I said, 'Jason, for God's sakes, man, nobody cares about Captain Kirk going up into space. You know, it was 55 years ago, by God, man!' " "So he continued to sell me on the idea and bless his soul," he continued. "Blue Origin is the idea." According to the official website, the New Shepard suborbital vehicle seats six astronauts, and since the ship is "fully autonomous," there is no pilot. The reusable craft takes 11-minute flights into space, "designed to take astronauts and research payloads past the Kármán line — the internationally recognized boundary of space."