On Tuesday, August 27, Jared Isaacman, the 41-year-old founder of payment technology company Shift4, will embark on a groundbreaking journey aboard a private SpaceX rocket. This mission, part of the Polaris Program, marks the first all-civilian spaceflight and will set a new record for human space travel since the Apollo era.
Two Years of Training for a Historic Mission
Isaacman has spent the past two years preparing for this mission alongside three other crew members: Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Scott “Kidd” Poteet and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. “We are incredibly thankful for this opportunity and to the thousands of SpaceX engineers who have contributed to this endeavor,” said Isaacman, who has been instrumental in creating the Polaris Program in collaboration with SpaceX.
A New Record in Space Travel
The mission will reach an impressive 870 miles from Earth, surpassing the distance traveled by any human since the Apollo missions. The crew will spend up to five days in orbit, flying higher than any previous Dragon mission, with the goal of achieving the highest Earth orbit ever flown. The mission will launch from SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Testing Starlink’s Laser-Linked Internet
One of the key objectives of this mission is to test Starlink’s laser-linked internet technology. SpaceX has deployed a fleet of 9,000 lasers on its Starlink constellation to deliver high-speed internet globally. Elon Musk has highlighted that laser links in orbit can reduce long-distance latency by up to 50%, owing to the higher speed of light in a vacuum and the shorter path compared to undersea fiber optics. Currently, Starlink’s laser system is handling over 42 petabytes of data per day for its customers.
Polaris Program: Advancing Human Spaceflight
The Polaris Program, named after the North Star, is a private initiative aimed at advancing human spaceflight capabilities. The upcoming mission, Polaris Dawn, is the first of the program’s series of missions. It will not only test Starlink’s laser-based communications in space but will also include a spacewalk at an altitude higher than any previous spacewalk on the ISS.
Spacewalk and Scientific Experiments
The Dragon spacecraft will orbit Earth in an elliptical path, reaching a maximum altitude of 870 miles. At 434 miles, the crew will conduct a 20-minute spacewalk, the first by private astronauts. They will be wearing SpaceX-developed spacesuits designed for enhanced comfort and safety during spacewalks. In addition to testing new technologies, the team will conduct 36 scientific experiments for organizations including NASA, Johns Hopkins, and the University of Pennsylvania.
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Isaacman and his crew are set to make history as they venture further into space than any civilians before, contributing to the future of human space exploration.