SEPTEMBER 12, 2024 – The Living Legends of Aviation are thrilled to share that Jared Isaacman has had a successful launch of the Polaris Dawn Mission on September 10, 2024 at 3:23am MDT. Isaacman, a renowned entrepreneur, pilot, and founder of payments processing company Shift4, has embarked on this groundbreaking journey aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, marking a new era in private space exploration. The Polaris Dawn mission is the first of three privately funded missions spearheaded by Isaacman, and represents a monumental leap toward the future of human spaceflight. Isaacman is commanding the mission alongside a distinguished crew, including his close friend and retired Air Force pilot Scott ‘Kidd’ Poteet, and SpaceX engineers Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis.
The mission’s spacecraft, aptly named Resilience, has already achieved an orbit height of 870 miles (1,400 kilometers) above Earth, surpassing the distance traveled by any human since NASA’s Apollo program concluded in the 1970s. This ambitious altitude has brought the crew through the Van Allen belt, a region of space with heightened radiation levels. However, the team is being well-protected by Resilience and their upgraded EVA (extravehicular activity) spacesuits, designed specifically for operations outside the spacecraft.
“The gravitas and courageous objectives of this mission cannot be overstated. The Legends cannot wait to welcome Jared and the entire Polaris Dawn crew back to earth after a successful voyage” ~ Stacey Elsner, Executive Director Living Legends of Aviation
During this mission, the crew is experiencing radiation exposure equivalent to about three months of what astronauts endure on the International Space Station. By studying the effects of this exposure on the human body, the team aims to gather valuable data that could inform future missions beyond Earth’s orbit.
Today, the mission’s second day, the crew has reached their maximum altitude and is conducting up to 40 scientific experiments at this height. These experiments include intersatellite laser communications between the Dragon spacecraft and SpaceX’s Starlink satellite constellation, a technological advancement that could revolutionize space communications.
A historic milestone is planned for tomorrow, September 12, 2024, mission day three: Jared Isaacman and Sarah Gillis will attempt the first privately funded civilian spacewalk. Conducted at an altitude of approximately 700 kilometers, this two-hour Extravehicular Activity (EVA) will not only test SpaceX’s new spacesuits, but also set the stage for future spacewalks by private sector astronauts. Unlike traditional spacesuits, which are tailor-made for specific individuals, these new EVA suits are designed to accommodate a wider range of astronaut shapes and sizes, enhancing their usability for commercial spaceflight, and reducing costs as space travel becomes more accessible. One of the unique challenges of this EVA mission is that the Dragon spacecraft, Resilience, does not have a traditional airlock. To conduct the spacewalk, the entire spacecraft will be depressurized, requiring all crew members to be fully suited in EVA gear, even though only Isaacman and Gillis will exit the spacecraft. This approach will break the record for the most people in the vacuum of space at one time and offer the flight team a rare opportunity to study the impact of decompression sickness, commonly known as “the bends,” and spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome, which affects astronauts’ vision in microgravity.
Isaacman’s vision for Polaris Dawn aligns closely with SpaceX’s broader ambitions of making life multiplanetary. As Gillis noted during training, “So far only countries have been able to perform a spacewalk. SpaceX has huge ambitions to get to Mars and make life multiplanetary. In order to get there, we need to start somewhere.” Isaacman echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the necessity of developing EVA capabilities to realize the long-term dream of populating other planets.
Through this mission, the Polaris Dawn team is not only pushing the boundaries of what private missions can achieve, but also laying the groundwork for future high-altitude endeavors that could eventually lead humanity back to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
We celebrate Jared Isaacman and his crew for their courage, innovation, and commitment to advancing the frontiers of space exploration. As a Living Legend of Aviation, Isaacman exemplifies the spirit of ingenuity and exploration that defines the aviation and aerospace community. We wish the Polaris Dawn team success in their historic journey and eagerly anticipate the groundbreaking achievements that lie ahead.
For more information about the mission and to follow its progress, please visit: https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=polarisdawn