Skip to main content

Elon Musk says SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission will be ‘epic.’ Here’s why

The Polaris Dawn Crew Dragon spacecraft as it will look in orbit.
How the Polaris Dawn spacewalk might look. SpaceX

SpaceX chief Elon Musk said on Sunday that the upcoming Polaris Dawn mission will be “epic.”

The highly anticipated mission is targeting Monday, August 26, for liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida> It will power four non-professional astronauts to orbit.

Recommended Videos

Rather than docking with the International Space Station (ISS), the Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying the adventurers will instead orbit Earth for several days. In fact, the spacecraft will orbit about 435 miles (700 kilometers) above Earth, taking it around 185 miles (298 kilometers) higher than the ISS and considerably higher than any Crew Dragon has ever traveled.

But what’s getting Musk particularly excited is the mission’s plan to perform the first-ever commercial spacewalk.

It will be carried out by two crew members: Mission commander Jared Isaacman, the billionaire CEO of payment-processing firm Shift4 and funder of Polaris Dawn, and Sarah Gillis, a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX. During the walk, the pair will test out an all-new spacesuit designed specifically for such extravehicular activities (EVAs).

“Building a base on the moon and a city on Mars will require thousands of spacesuits,” SpaceX said. “The development of this suit and the execution of the EVA will be important steps toward a scalable design for spacesuits on future long-duration missions.”

Also traveling aboard the Crew Dragon as part of the four-person crew will be Scott Poteet, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and former colleague of Isaacman at Shift4, and Anna Menon, a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX. While three of the crew members will be heading to orbit for the first time, for Isaacman this will be his second trip following the all-civilian Inspiration4 mission in 2021.

The voyage will also involve the first crewed test of Starlink laser-based communications in space, an endeavor that’s expected to provide useful data for future space communications systems necessary for missions to the moon and beyond. Additionally, the crew will carry out scientific research designed to advance both human health on Earth and scientists’ understanding of human health during future long-duration spaceflights.

SpaceX will live stream the launch and various parts of the mission. Digital Trends will share more detailed information on how to watch as soon as it becomes available.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
SpaceX captures Starship booster for the first time in historic test
Mechazilla catching Starship booster stage.

SpaceX has scripted history with the fifth test of its massive Starship rocket system. The giant rocket launched from the Starbase site in South Texas earlier today, and following a brief trip to space, the reusable spacecraft made a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

But the more remarkable feat was the successful capture of the Super Heavy booster, a fully reusable first stage that stands at a towering 71 meters and draws power from 33 Raptor engines. Up till now, the boosters have splashed into the water (or got damaged), but this time, SpaceX managed to capture it using giant mechanical arms.

Read more
How to watch SpaceX’s fifth Starship test flight on Sunday
spacex starship fifth flight live stream 5 website desktop 1 12e2f537a0 jpg

SpaceX is getting ready to launch its mighty Starship on its fifth test flight, scheduled for Sunday, October 13. With a mostly-successful fourth test flight behind it, the Starship has already been into orbit and returned to Earth mostly intact. This time, SpaceX will be hoping to catch its Super Heavy booster as well as taking the upper stage Starship into orbit.

The exact date of this fifth test flight has been delayed due to issues with licensing from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), but SpaceX has now confirmed it is targeting 8 a.m. ET (5 a.m. PT) Sunday for its test.

Read more
SpaceX could launch Starship on 5th test flight much earlier than expected
The world's most powerful rocket on the launchpad.

There’s growing expectation that SpaceX could launch the mighty Starship rocket as early as Sunday, October 13.

SpaceX was informed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last month that it was unlikely to receive a launch permit until late November as the regulator needed time to complete work on its flight launch assessment.

Read more