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Marking yet another historic commercial spaceflight, tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman has returned to Earth after conducting the first-ever private spacewalk. The mission, part of Isaacman's Polaris Dawn program, pushed the boundaries of civilian space exploration and set new altitude
records for non-government spacecraft.
Isaacman and his three-person crew splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico near Florida's Dry Tortugas on Sunday, September 15, 2024, concluding
their five-day orbital journey. The team, which included two SpaceX engineers and a former Air Force pilot, reached a peak altitude of 875 miles (1,408 km) above Earth - higher than any human has traveled since NASA's Apollo missions.
The mission's crowning achievement came on Thursday when Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis performed a brief spacewalk 460 miles (740 km) above Earth. This marks the first time non-professional astronauts have conducted an extravehicular activity (EVA) in orbit. Isaacman
became the 264th person in history to perform a spacewalk, with Gillis following as the 265th.
During the spacewalk, which lasted less than two hours, Isaacman and Gillis tested SpaceX's new spacesuit design. The company views this as a
crucial step in developing technology for future long-duration missions, potentially to Mars. The relatively short duration was primarily due to the time required for cabin depressurization and repressurization.
This mission represents Isaacman's second chartered flight with SpaceX, following his 2021 Inspiration4 mission. That earlier flight raised over $250 million for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. While the exact cost of the Polaris Dawn mission remains undisclosed, Isaacman is known to have shared expenses with SpaceX for this venture.
The space industry continues to evolve, missions like Polaris Dawn are likely to pave the way for increased civilian access to orbital and potentially interplanetary travel.
