The four-person SpaceX crew successfully handled several challenges that face astronauts when they venture beyond Earth and went further than any human has in the past 50 years
First private spacewalk takes place
Billionaire Jared Isaacman successfully took part in SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission to carry out the very first private space walk.
The crew made up of Mr Isaacman, 41, ex-air force commander Scott Poteet, 50, and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis, 30, and Anna Menon, 38, waited patiently in the Dragon capsule as it moved 435 miles above the Earth’s surface – the furthest any human has gone in more than 50 years.
Mr Isaacman, a pilot and founder of electronic payment company Shift4, funded the Polaris mission. It was one of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s riskiest ventures with the billionaire wanting to push the boundaries of space travel.
After being given the all-clear, Mr Isaacman opened the hatch and proceeded to slowly climb out into the vastness of space. A camera positioned on the outside of the the spacecraft captured the stunning moment Mr Isaacman stood with the Earth in front of him.
“Back at home we have a lot of work to do, but from here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world,” Mr Isaacman said as he looked over the planet.
In order to keep himself from floating away into space, Mr Isaacman held onto a metal bar and was tethered to the spacecraft. Over the course of several minutes he carried out a number of pre-planned manoeuvres to test the SpaceX suit.
After re-entering the capsule, Ms Gillis left the capsule as her colleagues cheered on from Earth while watching a livestream of the spacewalk. After about 15 minutes of performing the same movements as Mr Isaacman, she returned to the capsule.
Poteet and Menon remained inside the capsule during the spacewalk.
Once everyone was inside, the hatch was sealed in preparation of re-establishing pressure inside. The pressure was stabilised by using oxygen from the crew’s suits as well as from nitrogen that was released into the capsule via a team back on Earth.
Following a successful leak check, Ms Gillis and Mr Isaacman were seen waiting to strap themselves back into their seats. Camera inside the capsule showed the crew members remaining focused following the space walk.
The private venture saw the crew exposed to radiation from the Van Allen Belts that surround Earth. Astronauts who fly through the belt during their missions do so quickly in order to limit their exposure to radiation.
Mr Isaacman and Ms Gillis faced other threats, such as potentially fatal pressure changes as they left the capsule. In preparation, the crew depressurised their spacecraft.
Ahead of the mission, several people shared the significance of the moment on social media. Astronaut Chris Hadfield said in a post shared to X/Twitter earlier today said of the crew: “These 4 are depressurizing their spaceship to zero tonight – Sarah & Jared will go outside. First-ever use of the new @SpaceX spacewalking suit. That’s no small step, @PolarisProgram.”
SpaceX said in a post shared on the social media platform said: “All systems are looking good for the Polaris Dawn crew to perform the first spacewalk from Dragon today.”
The crew embarked on their mission from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday, although the initial launch was pushed back by about an hour. There had been numerous delays due to weather as well as a helium leak.
The Dragon spacecraft reached an altitude of 870 miles above Earth yesterday, reports MailOnline. Before today, spacewalks were only carried out by state agencies due to the extreme risks involved.
It was also the first time that SpaceX EVA suits will be used outside the laboratory.