SpaceX has delayed the historic launch of its all-civilian Polaris Dawn mission, which was set to feature the first spacewalk by private citizens. Originally scheduled for early Tuesday, the launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center is now targeted for early Wednesday due to a technical issue.
The mission, led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, encountered a problem with a ground-side helium leak in the Quick Disconnect umbilical. Umbilicals link the rocket with its launch tower, and helium is used to pressurize fuel lines.
The Polaris Dawn mission will be launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket, with the SpaceX Dragon capsule reaching a peak altitude of 870 miles (1,400 kilometers) — the highest for a crewed mission since the Apollo era.
Isaacman, who is commanding the mission, will lead his team through the mission’s highlight: the first commercial spacewalk. The crew will wear new SpaceX extravehicular activity (EVA) suits. The team includes Scott Poteet, a retired US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel; Sarah Gillis, a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX; and Anna Menon, also a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX.
The crew has trained for over two years, accumulating hundreds of hours in simulators and participating in activities like skydiving, centrifuge training, scuba diving, and climbing an Ecuadoran volcano.
Polaris Dawn is the first of three missions in the Polaris program, a collaboration between Isaacman and SpaceX. The program aims to test new technology and advance SpaceX’s vision of space travel.
While Isaacman has not disclosed his total investment, reports suggest he spent around $200 million for SpaceX’s Inspiration4 mission in September 2021, the first all-civilian orbital flight.
The Polaris Dawn mission will reach its highest altitude on the first day, briefly entering the Van Allen radiation belt, a high-radiation zone. Although it will orbit significantly higher than the International Space Station, it will fall short of the Apollo 13 mission’s distance of over 248,000 miles.
On the third day, the crew will don advanced EVA spacesuits with heads-up displays, helmet cameras, and enhanced joint mobility systems to perform spacewalks. Each astronaut will spend 15 to 20 minutes outside the spacecraft. Due to the lack of an airlock on the Dragon capsule, those inside will also be exposed to space conditions.
The mission will also test laser-based satellite communication with Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet network, aiming to improve space communication speeds. The crew will conduct nearly 40 experiments focused on human health in space, including tests on contact lenses with embedded microelectronics to monitor eye pressure and shape.
After six days, Polaris Dawn will end with a splashdown off the Florida coast, where a SpaceX recovery ship will be waiting. The second Polaris mission will also use a Dragon capsule, while the third mission is planned to be the first crewed flight of SpaceX’s Starship, a key part of Elon Musk’s vision for Mars colonization.
