A SpaceX capsule carrying four private citizens launched early Tuesday on a five-day mission that will include the first spacewalk by an all-civilian crew.
The mission, named Polaris Dawn, launched at 5:24 a.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The flight is designed to take the four crew members to the highest orbit reached by humans since the last Apollo moon mission in 1972: 1,400 kilometers above the Earth’s surface. That’s more than three times higher than the International Space Station. During their stay in space, the group will test new spacesuits and technologies that could pave the way for future long-duration missions to the Moon and eventually Mars.
Polaris Dawn’s launch was originally scheduled for late August, but was postponed after a helium leak was discovered at the launch pad. Then weather delayed it again off the coast of Florida, where the SpaceX capsule was scheduled to splash down at the end of the expedition.
The four-person crew includes billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of payment processing company Shift4; retired Air Force Lt. Col. Scott “Kidd” Poteet; and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. Isaacman, who previously funded and participated in SpaceX’s first all-civilian mission to orbit in 2021, is funding the Polaris Dawn mission in partnership with SpaceX.
The spacewalk is scheduled for the third day of the mission. Isaacman and Gillis are expected to exit the Crew Dragon spacecraft on a tether, but since the spacecraft has no pressure lock, the entire capsule will be depressurized and subjected to vacuum conditions. Therefore, all four astronauts will wear and test newly developed spacesuits during the spacewalk.
If successful, this trip will make history. Until now, only astronauts from government space agencies have ventured into the vacuum of space to build or improve orbiting space stations, repair satellites and conduct scientific experiments.
During its journey, the Crew Dragon capsule’s orbit will be far enough away that the spacecraft will traverse the inner regions of the Van Allen radiation belt, a zone of high-energy radiation particles trapped in the Earth’s magnetosphere.
The mission will allow scientists to study the effects of space radiation on the astronauts and the vehicle. The findings could help SpaceX plan future missions to the Moon and Mars, which would require astronauts to fly through the inner and outer Van Allen radiation belts.
Isaacman launched the Polaris program in partnership with SpaceX to test technologies and maneuvers for exploring space beyond Earth’s orbit. Polaris Dawn is the first of three planned space flights funded by the billionaire. He has not disclosed the cost of the program or the possible destinations and schedule of the other missions.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com.
