SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission is aimed to feature the first privately managed spacewalk, thereby pushing space technology boundaries.
SpaceX, spearheaded by Elon Musk, has yet again delayed the launch of a rocket carrying four private astronauts to space. The Polaris Dawn mission is aimed at performing the world’s first commercial spacewalk.
The groundbreaking launch, which was planned for August 27, was pushed because of a helium leak, but SpaceX was hoping for lift-off opportunities on Wednesday and Thursday. But owing to unfavourable weather forecasts in areas off the coast of Florida, the launch has been postponed and the company is yet to reveal the launch date. Nonetheless, SpaceX will continue to monitor the conditions for a favourable mission ahead. The launch is slated from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Space X shared on X, which is owned by Musk, “Due to unfavourable weather forecasted in Dragon’s splashdown areas off the coast of Florida, we are now standing down from tonight and tomorrow’s Falcon 9 launch opportunities of Polaris Dawn. Teams will continue to monitor weather for favourable launch and return conditions.” Check it out:
Due to unfavorable weather forecasted in Dragon’s splashdown areas off the coast of Florida, we are now standing down from tonight and tomorrow’s Falcon 9 launch opportunities of Polaris Dawn. Teams will continue to monitor weather for favorable launch and return conditions
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 28, 2024
Polaris Dawn, which is the signature moment of the mission, is expected to be a 15-to-20 minute spacewalk by billionaire Jared Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis. For those caught unaware, Isaacman has earlier been on a journey to orbit with SpaceX in 2021, and has supported the Polaris Dawn flight and its development through funding as the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments. Joining Isaacman and Gills on the mission in the four-person crew are SpaceX engineer Anna Menon along with Isaacman’s friend and former Air Force pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet.
While the spacewalk remains the main mission of the Polaris Dawn, it had other objectives as well, including breaking some spaceflight records. In the first phase of flight, it was planned that the Crew Dragon spacecraft would reach a height of 870 miles (1,400 kilometres) above Earth, which would be the farthest humans have flown into space ever since Apollo landed the astronauts on the moon.
As for the mission, which will last six days, it is a massive step towards the privatisation of space exploration, since its highlight remains the spacewalk on the mission's third day which would be conducted without the involvement of government astronauts, if all goes well.
As the four-person crew ventures into Earth's orbit aboard a modified Crew Dragon capsule, it differs from earlier missions as the entire capsule will be depressurised, and hence the entire crew would have to rely solely on their spacesuits for survival. The mission will, in turn, serve as a major test for SpaceX's new spacesuits as well.
