Polaris Dawn Mission: First Commercial Spacewalk
In a groundbreaking endeavour in the field of commercial spaceflights, the mission aims to send four civilian astronauts to orbit the Earth in an elliptical path aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft.
SpaceX's Polaris Dawn: The Diverse Crew, Why Is It Delayed | Know About The First Commercial Spacewalk
In a groundbreaking endeavour in the field of commercial spaceflights, the Polaris Dawn mission aims to send four civilian astronauts to orbit the Earth in an elliptical path aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft.
Crew Dragon Spacecraft
X/@ToK_ScienceTree
Polaris Dawn Mission: What Is The Objective
The mission's target is to reach an altitude of up to 1,400 kilometers above Earth. If accomplished, this will set the record for reaching the highest altitude in any crewed mission since the Apollo era.
SpaceX Mission Launch
AP
Why Is The Mission Delayed?
SpaceX today postponed the launch of the mission owing to unfavorable weather conditions in the splashdown areas off the Florida coast. Earlier, it was postponed due to a helium leak in a launch pad.
SpaceX Mission Launch
AP
About The Crew
The Polaris Dawn mission is set to bring a crew of four SpaceX astronauts including Sarah Gillis, Scott Poteet, and Anna Menon led by billionaire entrepreneur and astronaut Jared Isaacman into Earth's orbit aboard a modified Crew Dragon capsule.
Polaris Dawn mission crew
AP
About Jared Isaacman
Jared Isaacman, the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, will lead the mission. Previously, he commanded the Inspiration4 mission in 2021, the first all-civilian mission to orbit Earth, which was also organized and primarily funded by him in partnership with SpaceX.
Jared Isaacman
AP
About Sarah Gillis
Gillis pursued graduation from the University of Colorado Boulder with an engineering degree. She joined SpaceX as an intern in 2015 and quickly rose through the ranks. She will be one of the two crew members to step outside the capsule for the spacewalk.
Sarah Gillis
X/ @Gillis_SarahE
About Scott Poteet
Scott Poteet, the mission's pilot, has a 20-year-long career in the U.S. Air Force with over 3,200 flight hours in various aircraft. Besides piloting, he will also assist with the spacewalk, provide communication support, and collaborate with mission control.
Scott Poteet
X/@KiddPoteet
About Anna Menon
Being a lead space operations engineer, Menon will serve as the mission specialist and medical officer. The Duke University graduate in biomedical engineering will be responsible for the crew's health and well-being during the mission.
Anna Menon
X/@annawmenon
SpaceX Slimline Spacesuit
SpaceX's new slimline spacesuits are equipped to provide life support in the harsh environment of space. The spacesuits underwent rigorous testing before entering the Van Allen belt, a region filled with charged particles that can interfere with electronic systems and pose health risks to astronauts.
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Polaris Dawn crew
X/ @Chris_Kurdyla
Safety Measures
Ahead of launching the mission, SpaceX and the Polaris crew have planned for a range of contingencies, including the possibility of an oxygen leak and difficulty or failure to reseal the hatch door of the space capsule.
SpaceX capsule
AP
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