In a ground-breaking event for private space travel, SpaceX, the aerospace company founded by Elon Musk, has once again pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in space exploration. On September 12, 2024, Jared Isaacman, a billionaire entrepreneur, and Sarah Gillis, a SpaceX engineer, made history by completing the first-ever private spacewalk.
This event unfolded aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, which was orbiting at an impressive altitude of about 435 miles above Earth, significantly higher than the International Space Station. The mission, known as Polaris Dawn, not only aimed to test new technologies but also to perform this historic spacewalk, showcasing SpaceX’s ambition to make space travel accessible to civilians.
Jared Isaacman, who also funded and commanded the mission, stepped out into the void of space, describing the experience as “gorgeous.” Following him, Sarah Gillis conducted mobility tests in her spacesuit, designed by SpaceX for future lunar and Martian missions. Their spacewalk lasted approximately 10 minutes each, a duration constrained by the need to manage oxygen supplies carefully during what’s known as a ‘pre-breathe’ protocol to prevent decompression sickness.
The significance of this event cannot be overstated. Traditionally, spacewalks, or Extravehicular Activities (EVAs), have been the domain of highly trained government astronauts. However, SpaceX’s achievement with civilians Isaacman and Gillis underscores a pivotal shift towards commercial space travel and activities.
The Polaris Dawn mission itself is part of a broader program intended to advance humanity’s reach into space, with goals of testing new spacesuit technologies, communication systems like the Starlink satellites with Direct to Cell capabilities, and life-support systems necessary for longer-duration space travel.
This spacewalk was not without its risks. The Crew Dragon capsule had to be completely depressurized, exposing the entire crew to the vacuum of space, relying solely on their spacesuits for life support. This operation required meticulous preparation, including dealing with potential issues like toxin venting from spacecraft materials when exposed to space.
SpaceX’s approach to this mission reflects its ethos of reducing the cost and increasing the accessibility of space travel. By demonstrating that civilians, with the right equipment and minimal training relative to professional astronauts, can perform tasks like spacewalks, SpaceX is paving the way for a future where space travel might become as common as air travel is today.
The successful completion of this spacewalk by Isaacman and Gillis not only marks a historic first but also serves as a testament to human ingenuity and the relentless pursuit of expanding our frontiers, orchestrated by visionaries like Elon Musk and executed by teams at SpaceX. This event might well be remembered as a key moment when the cosmos opened up not just to explorers and scientists, but to humanity at large.
