SpaceX Polaris - as it happened: Billionaire floats into space on risky first private spacewalk
The two hour spacewalk will take place at 5:58am ET (10:58am BST) on Thursday
Two crew members of SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission are attempting the first ever privately-funded spacewalk.
Billionaire Jared Isaacman stepped out of the Crew Dragon spacecraft just before midday to begin a two hour float in space at an orbit of 700 kilometres – nearly double the altitude of the International Space Station. A backup opportunity is available on Friday at the same time.
The main aim of the endeavour is to test SpaceX’s new extravehicular activity (EVA) astronaut suits, which have been designed to eventually take astronauts to the Moon, Mars and beyond.
Fellow Polaris Dawn crew members Anna Menon and Kidd Poteet will remain in the capsule, with 36 research studies and experiments planned for the five day mission.
You can follow all the latest news, updates and analysis – and watch a live stream of the attempt as soon as it’s available – right here.
Was the Polaris Dawn mission illegal?
Some space experts have questioned whether the Polaris Dawn mission is actually legal, claiming that it goes against the Outer Space Treaty of 1967. According to this treaty, any activities by non-government entities in outer space need to be approved by a nation state.
We’ve heard from Dr Ian Whittaker, a space physics expert at Nottingham Trent University, who says this 57-year-old rule is no longer enforced.
“The legality of this has been called into question as it does appear to violate one of the lesser known articles from the Outer Space treaty of 1967, however, this treaty is massively outdated and not enforced, which would be by the UN if it was,” he says.
“The success of the first non space agency astronaut spacewalk is extremely exciting for the private space industry as it is the first step on a longer road towards space tourism. The high cost will mean that only the ultra rich get to experience this for now but putting this cost in the hands of businesses means that taxpayer money can be used for other purposes.”
Why Polaris Dawn could finally make commercial space travel useful
A billionaire going on a privately-funded spacewalk is proving as polarising as it is pioneering.
The Polaris Dawn mission, conducted by SpaceX but paid for by US entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, is the latest in a series of commercial ventures that are opening up space to anyone rich enough to pay for it. Previous private space flights have been praised by some for heralding a new era of space access, while being ridiculed by others as the latest folly of self-indulgent billionaires.
But this mission is a giant leap from the vainglorious joyrides to the edge of space undertaken by Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson, who blew their billions on unconvincing attempts to call themselves astronauts. (Despite Blue Origin repeatedly referring to Bezos as an “international astronaut” during his 10-minute flight to the Kármán line in 2021, the trip did not meet the astronaut criteria set out by the US Federal Aviation Administration, which states that crew members must take part in activities that are “essential to public safety, or contributed to human space flight safety”.)
By contrast, Polaris Dawn will travel more than 10-times further than either Blue Origin or Virgin Galactic have ventured and will last for days, not minutes. More than just a nice view for the crew, SpaceX says the mission will provide “valuable insight to future missions on the road to making life multiplanetary”, alluding to Elon Musk’s ambition to colonise Mars.
You can read more about why this mission might actually matter here:
Spacex: The world’s first civilian spacewalk could make private space travel useful
Why a billionaire just stuck his head out of a spacecraft – and the risks he faced in doing so
This was easily the riskiest of SpaceX’s missions, especially its commercial work. But it was partly for a good cause, and could help carry humanity on to other planets.
Why a billionaire just stuck his head out of a spacecraft – for a very good reason
The spacewalk is now over and history has been made. You can read our full article about the mission here:
A billionaire has floated out into space on a SpaceX mission
The crew will now prepare to come back down and splash into the ocean, before being picked up by a SpaceX craft. When they’ve arrived they will be measured and scanned to understand how the flight – including their trip through the radiation belts off the Earth – has changed them.
Polaris Dawn crew share pictures in wake of historic spacewalk
The crew of Polaris Dawn have shared some images following their historic spacewalk yesterday, together with a message to those of us back on Earth: “Hello Earth – We are so grateful for all the support! Please enjoy two recent photos from our mission and stay tuned for our next message Sent to you from space over a beam of Starlink laser light.”
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