Space exploration is no longer an arena where only world governments compete. Elon Musk’s SpaceX just sent the first crew of civilians to space on board the Polaris Dawn. Space’s Crew Dragon capsule carried Jared Isaacman, an American billionaire; Scott Poteet, a retired US Air Force pilot; and two SpaceX employees, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. The SpaceX civilian spacewalk was bankrolled by Isaacman, who is onboard the Polaris Dawn as the mission commander.
Polaris Dawn is go for launch pic.twitter.com/tx1gUyZjZr
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 10, 2024
The four-person team is expected to soar 870 miles away from Earth atop a Falcon 9 rocket. This five-day space mission will be the furthest humans have traveled from Earth since the Apollo moon missions. The four-person team on board the Polaris Dawn represents the advent of civilians exploring the dark abyss of outer space.
Watch live as Falcon 9 launches the @PolarisProgram’s Polaris Dawn crew on a multi-day mission orbiting Earth https://t.co/u1KqQx5AFr
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 10, 2024
SpaceX confirmed the successful launch of the Polaris Dawn. Approximately 20 minutes after the launch, the main engine cut off and detached from the main rocket. In a subsequent live stream, commentators on the SpaceX livestream remarked that ‘everything looks good’ as the crew began to ‘float free’ in microgravity. Isaacman and his team are scheduled to spend the next five days in orbit, aiming to cruise at the highest Earth orbit ever flown. Details from SpaceX on an X post revealed that Polaris Dawn will reach its peak altitude on Day 1 of its five-day mission. On Day 1, Polaris Dawn also aims to enter the Van Allen belt, where Earth’s magnetic field traps extremely dangerous, highly charged particles.
The first civilian spacewalk is slotted in for Thursday, September 12th, following a two-day pre-breathe process. In preparation of the spacewalk, the astronauts onboard the Polaris Dawn will spend the next two days breathing an oxygen-rich gas mixture to purge their bodies of nitrogen to avoid decompression sickness. After which, the four-person team will dawn their custom SpaceX Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) suits and explore the realms of deep space. Crew members will take turns in pairs to explore the wonders of zero gravity outside the spacecraft.
The Polaris Dawn crew will also utilize this opportunity to test SpaceX’s latest laser-based communication system. This exercise aims to cement stable communication between the spacecraft and Starlink.
