First commercial spacewalk set as SpaceX’s Polaris reaches new heights

Sep 10, 2024

Craig Nigrelli Anchor

By Craig Nigrelli (Anchor), William Jackson (Producer), Zachary Hill (Video Editor)

Early Tuesday, Sept. 10, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, four private astronauts, led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, embarked on a landmark space mission aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule. The SpaceX mission, dubbed Polaris Dawn, is set to reach an unprecedented altitude of 870 miles above Earth — the highest since the Apollo moon missions.

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The mission is scheduled for five days and is designed to test cutting-edge spacesuit technologies and conduct the first wholly commercial spacewalk at an altitude of 435 miles.

This spacewalk will be notable because it will occur without professional astronauts and without an airlock. Instead, the spacecraft’s entire cabin will be depressurized to accommodate the walk.

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Isaacman, joined by a retired military fighter pilot and two seasoned SpaceX engineers, successfully reached orbit approximately nine minutes post-lift-off. The launch faced several delays due to a helium leak and subsequent regulatory challenges surrounding booster recovery.

During its orbit, the team will undertake 36 scientific studies in collaboration with 31 partner institutions. These studies aim to investigate the effects of space conditions on human health, vital for the planning of future long-duration spaceflights and potential missions to Mars.

Tags: Kennedy Space Center, NASA, Space Technology, SpaceX

[CRAIG NIGRELLI]

EARLY TUESDAY AT NASA’S KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FOUR PRIVATE ASTRONAUTS LED BY BILLIONAIRE JARED ISAACMAN LAUNCHED INTO SPACE ABOARD SPACEX’S CREW DRAGON CAPSULE ON THE POLARIS DAWN MISSION. THIS GROUNDBREAKING MISSION AIMS TO SET A NEW RECORD BY REACHING AN ALTITUDE OF 870 MILES—THE HIGHEST EARTH ORBIT ACHIEVED BY HUMANS SINCE THE APOLLO MISSIONS.

THE FIVE-DAY VENTURE IS DESIGNED TO TEST ADVANCED SPACESUIT TECHNOLOGIES AND EXECUTE THE FIRST ENTIRELY COMMERCIAL SPACEWALK, SCHEDULED FOR THE MISSION’S THIRD DAY AT AN ALTITUDE OF 435 MILES.

THIS mission MARKs A HISTORIC MOMENT IN SPACE TRAVEL — IT features THE FIRST SPACEWALK PERFORMED WITHOUT PROFESSIONAL ASTRONAUTS AND WITHOUT AN AIRLOCK — INSTEAD, THE ENTIRE CABIN WILL BE DEPRESSURIZED.

THE DIVERSE CREW INCLUDES ISAACMAN, A RETIRED MILITARY FIGHTER PILOT, AND TWO SPACEX ENGINEERS. THEY SUCCESSFULLY REACHED ORBIT APPROXIMATELY NINE MINUTES AFTER LIFT-OFF, FOLLOWING A SERIES OF launch DELAYS CAUSED BY A HELIUM LEAK AND REGULATORY CHALLENGES RELATED TO BOOSTER RECOVERY.

THE CREW WILL CONDUCT 36 SCIENTIFIC STUDIES FROM 31 PARTNER INSTITUTIONS TO INVESTIGATE HOW SPACE CONDITIONS AFFECT HUMAN HEALTH.

THESE STUDIES AIM TO not only ADVANCE HUMAN HEALTH understanding, but also , SUPPORT FUTURE EXPLORATORY MISSIONS, INCLUDING POTENTIAL TRIPS TO MARS.

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