SpaceX launches billionaire's private crew on milestone spacewalk mission

  • 4 days ago
Four private astronauts blasted into space early on Tuesday (September 10) in a modified SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, kicking off the company's five-day Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to test new spacesuit designs and conduct the first private spacewalk.

The crew, a billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees, lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida about 5:23 a.m. EST (0923 GMT).

The capsule reached orbit about nine and a half minutes later, and the crew batted around a small plush astronaut toy dog as free fall - zero gravity - became apparent.

Crew Dragon separated from its support trunk three minutes after that, with onboard cameras revealing a spectacular view of the capsule over the sunlit Earth.
Transcript
00:005, 4, 3, 2, 1, ignition, and liftoff.
00:07Go Falcon, go for landing.
00:11Copy, 1 Alpha.
00:14Vehicle is switching downrange.
00:18Stage 1 propulsion is nominal.
00:302 minutes into flight. Everything continues to look good.
00:41We'll have, in half a minute, 3 major activities.
00:45Shutdown of the 9 Merlin 1D engines.
00:48Stage 1 throttle down.
00:50And then ignition of the 2nd stage engine.
00:54Throttle down, we're holding a constant acceleration now for the crew just below 4 G's.
01:00We're coming up 70 kilometers.
01:08Preparing for MECO.
01:13Main engine cutoff.
01:152 Alpha.
01:17Stage separation confirmed.
01:19Copy, 2 Alpha.
01:24Ignition.
01:31As you can tell by the cheers behind us and the views on your screen,
01:38the first stage booster now on its way to attempt landing on Just Read the Instructions.

Recommended

0:38
I
Up next
SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn Launches with Four-Person Civilian Crew, Aims to Break NASA Record and Conduct First Commercial Spacewalk
Benzinga
1:07
OTD In Space – May 22: SpaceX Launches 1st Private Cargo Mission To The International Space Station
Space.com
11:07
'We are go' NASA astronauts Behnken, Hurley set to make history on SpaceX Crew Dragon
NTL Studio Video
2:55
VIDEO: The first all-civilian crew launches into orbit aboard SpaceX's Dragon capsule
Tech Insider
0:45
People took to the streets of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to call for the Israeli government to make a deal with Hamas that secures the release of Israeli hostages
inews
2:11
How Taiwan is preparing for war with China
inews
0:25
Ella Emhoff speaks at DNC
inews
2:38
SpaceX Crew Dragon Launch: NASA, Elon Musk Make History As A Private Firm Puts Astronauts Into Space
LatestLY
1:19
Launch Recap: NASA and SpaceX fly Astronauts to the Space Station
NASA
1:02:44
No Gain, No Love (2024) Ep.1 EngSub
ReBeShow
1:50:18
Watch Crew ( 2024 ) Full Hindi Movie
Zee Cinema
4:45:53
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 Astronauts Launch to the Space Station
NASA
3:39
SpaceXs Crew Dragon Launch With NASA Astronauts: All You Need To Know About Mission Demo-2
LatestLY
1:14
Billionaire Pulls Off First Private Spacewalk in SpaceX Polaris Dawn Mission
TIME
0:43
OTD in Space - December 10: 1st Long-Duration Crewed Mission Launches to Salyut 6
Space.com
4:46:19
Watch NASA's SpaceX Crew-2 Launch to the International Space Station
NASA
1:21
Polaris Dawn Takes Off With the First Ever Civilian Spacewalk Soon to Follow
Amaze Lab
3:55
SpaceX Crew-1 for All
NASA
4:13:10
NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 Mission Launches to the Space Station (Official NASA Broadcast)
NASA
2:52
SpaceX Launches Inspiration4, An All Civilian Astronaut Crew Into Orbit, All About It
LatestLY
0:51
SpaceX launches all-civilian crew for first private spacewalk
AFP English
0:53
OTD in Space - Nov. 2: 1st Crew Arrives at the International Space Station
Space.com
1:07
OTD in Space – May 5: Al Shepard Becomes 1st American in Space
Space.com
4:42:01
NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 Launch (Official NASA Broadcast)
NASA
0:48
OTD in Space - Sept. 7: STS-69 Endeavour Launches on NASA's 100th
Space.com