The “Polaris Dawn” mission was originally supposed to be realized in August 2024 with the help of the space company SpaceX. Now a new date has been set.
Polaris Dawn and SpaceX: History of the space mission
The Polaris Dawn project is part of the Polaris program initiated by adventurer and multi-billionaire Jared Isaacman. It includes a total of three flights. Each of the flights will be carried out with Elon Musk's company SpaceX.
- It is not Isaacman's first space flight program. In 2021, the entrepreneur already flew into orbit with a Falcon 9 rocket and a crew of four. The Inspiration4 mission at the time was the first privately financed orbital flight. In addition, there was no trained astronaut on board.
- The goal of the mission was to raise funds. In total, Isaacman was able to raise over $200 million in donations to benefit St. Jude Hospital in Memphis.
- Isaacman is planning a total of three flights with the Polaris program. As before, he is chartering a Falcon 9 rocket and a Crew Dragon spacecraft from SpaceX.
- The flight was originally scheduled to take place in August 2024. However, due to weather conditions, it was postponed to September 4, 2024.
- After a fatal explosion occurred in a Falcon 9, the US aviation authority stopped all flights of this rocket type. However, on September 1, 2024, SpaceX received permission to launch again. September 4, 2024 can therefore be considered the launch date of the space mission.
Goal of the space flight
Unlike the Inspiration4 mission, the flights are intended to be less about charity than about contributions to space research.
- During Isaacman's flight, the spacecraft will move up to 1,400 kilometers away from Earth. Only during the Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s did humans travel further away from Earth.
- Among other things, the Polaris Dawn project will test new types of space suits. Several experiments in space medicine will also be carried out on board the Crew Dragon.
- In addition, two people will experience the first private spacewalk. Elon Musk's Starlink network will also be tested.
- After five days in space, the spacecraft will finally land back on Earth.
Crew of the spaceship
In addition to Jared Isaacman, three other people will fit into the Crew Dragon C207 spacecraft. These people will be launched into space from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral:
- Jared Isaacman: The entrepreneur, who grew up in New Jersey, will accompany the flight as commander. He dropped out of high school at 16 without a diploma and founded his own payment processor in 1999, which is now known as Shift4 Payments. Isaacman also trains fighter pilots and owns the largest private fighter jet fleet in the world.
- Scott Poteet: The fighter pilot, born in 1973, was a member of the US Air Force for 20 years and has over 3,200 flight hours under his belt. He later worked for Isaacman's aviation company Draken International and most recently for Elon Musk's SpaceX.
- Sarah Gillis: The youngest participant in the flight is employed as an engineer at SpaceX. She accompanied and supervised astronauts before being nominated as an astronaut herself in 2022. She is also scheduled to conduct the first private spacewalk together with Isaacman.
- Anna Menon: The engineer worked for NASA for several years and has been employed by SpaceX since 2017. As a mission doctor, she will provide medical care to the crew.