Billionaire and Engineer Conduct First Private Spacewalk In SpaceX Mission (reuters.com)
- Reference: 0174984911
- News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/24/09/12/2120208/billionaire-and-engineer-conduct-first-private-spacewalk-in-spacex-mission
- Source link: https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/spacex-polaris-crew-poised-attempt-first-private-spacewalk-2024-09-11/
> The astronauts on the [3]Polaris Dawn mission went one at a time, each spending about 10 minutes outside the gumdrop-shaped Crew Dragon capsule on a tether, as Elon Musk's company again succeeded in pushing the boundaries of commercial spaceflight. Jared Isaacman, a pilot and the founder of electronic payments company Shift4, exited first, followed by SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis, while crewmates Scott Poteet and Anna Menon watched from inside. The whole process, unfolding about 450 miles (730 km) above Earth, lasted an hour and 46 minutes. The four astronauts have been orbiting Earth since Tuesday's launch from Florida. Isaacman is bankrolling the Polaris mission, as he did his Inspiration4 flight with SpaceX in 2021.
>
> Streamed live on SpaceX's website, the mission tested trailblazing equipment including slim spacesuits and a process to fully depressurize the Crew Dragon cabin - technology that Musk hopes to advance for ambitious future private missions to Mars. "Back at home we all have a lot of work to do. But from here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world," Isaacman said after emerging from the spacecraft, silhouetted with the half-lit planet glittering below. It was one of the riskiest missions yet for SpaceX, the only private company that has proven to be capable of routinely sending people to and from Earth's orbit.
"Today's success represents a giant leap forward for the commercial space industry and @NASA's long-term goal to build a vibrant U.S. space economy," [4]said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
You can watch a livestream recording of the Polaris Dawn Mission [5]here .
[1] https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/spacex-polaris-crew-poised-attempt-first-private-spacewalk-2024-09-11/
[2] https://science.slashdot.org/story/24/09/10/217207/spacex-launches-a-billionaire-to-conduct-the-first-private-spacewalk
[3] https://polarisprogram.com/dawn/
[4] https://x.com/SenBillNelson/status/1834203223520956547
[5] https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1OyJAZnwZqLxb
Not really a good use of my tax dollars (Score:2)
and given how billionaires dodge taxes (effective rate 8% vs my 27%) it *is* my tax dollars paying for it. Nvmd that 95% of the tech that made this possible was invented on my dime.
Maybe I'd be less salty if it wasn't election season and I wasn't being bombarded with ads telling me how we should cancel foreign aid to spend the money here when I've got a refugee crisis at the border being exploited for political gain... Or if I wasn't looking at spending $360k on a house my parents would've paid $60k for
Not up to you (Score:2)
Nobody asked for your permission. Nobody needs your permission.
YOU do not get to tell everyone else how to live their lives. YOU do not decide what is and is not valid science. YOU are not the god-king of America.
congratulations (Score:2)
congratulations to them all. I'm not sure I'm ready to trust my life to things I've created. This is a great outcome - I hope they get back safely.
It was cool (Score:2)
Can't wait for the video to be downloaded. The live feed was spotty, I'll bet some of the captured video is really good.