- "The "Polaris Dawn" soared to an unprecedented height of 900 miles.
The independently financed space venture "Polaris Dawn" has attained its peak height of 1,400 kilometers astronomically above Earth. SpaceX declared this achievement on a Tuesday night via the messaging service X. In line with SpaceX's statements, this marks the farthest humans have ventured from Earth since the Apollo lunar missions in the early '70s.
For perspective, the International Space Station (ISS) hovers around 400 kilometers above our planet. In 1966, astronauts attained a comparable orbit with "Gemini 11," culminating in an altitude of 1,374 kilometers.
Billionaire business magnate Jared Isaacman spearheads this expedition, working in conjunction with SpaceX's founder, Elon Musk, who stays grounded. Isaacman, accompanied by private astronauts Kidd Poteet, Sarah Gillis, and Anna Menon, embarked on their journey from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday morning, using a Crew Dragon spacecraft propelled by a Falcon 9 rocket.
Spacewalk at 700 kilometers altitude
A spacewalk is scheduled during the mission, with an estimated altitude of approximately 700 kilometers. At this juncture, the private space enterprise will test a novel suits designed for extravehicular activities.
According to the project's website, this "initial commercial spacewalk" promises enhanced mobility compared to previous models. The suit also boasts an integrated helmet display, camera, and advanced materials for better temperature regulation within the relentless cold vacuum of space.
After embarking from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Polaris Dawn team plans to conduct a spacewalk at an altitude of approximately 700 kilometers. Notably, this mission will take place at Cape Canaveral, the iconic launch site where many space expeditions originated.
