SpaceX astronauts complete first commercial spacewalk more than 400 miles above Earth
close video SpaceX Polaris Dawn conducts first private spacewalk with billionaire Jared Isaacman
Jared Isaacman, CEO of Shift4 integrated payment processing solutions, participated in the first ever private spacewalk on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (Credit: @SpaceX via X)
Jared Isaacman, CEO of Shift4 integrated payment processing solutions, participated in the first ever private spacewalk by a group of astronauts who left a SpaceX capsule after a delay of a few hours, testing a new line of spacesuits in the company's riskiest mission yet.
Along with the billionaire entrepreneur is a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees. The four have been orbiting Earth aboard Crew Dragon since Tuesday's pre-dawn launch from Florida of the Polaris Dawn mission.
Isaacman "egressed Dragon" and conducted his first "suit mobility tests that will test overall hand body control, vertical movement with Skywalker, and foot restraint," according to a SpaceX post on X at 6:53 a.m.
"Back at home, we all have a lot of work to do, but from here, work sure looks like a perfect world," Isaacman said during his first views outside the Dragon. Minutes later, he said "it's gorgeous."
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Billionaire Jared Isaacman conducting suit checks during spacewalk on Sept. 12, 2024. (SpaceX / Fox News)
Jared Isaacman on standby to fully open the hatch during a SpaceX spacewalk. (SpaceX / Fox News)
The mission is the Elon Musk-led company's latest and riskiest bid to push the boundaries of commercial spaceflight.
The capsule, at an altitude of 435 miles, was completely depressurized, and the whole crew relied on their slim, SpaceX-developed spacesuits for oxygen.
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Anna Menon, Scott Poteet, commander Jared Isaacman and Sarah Gillis, crew members of Polaris Dawn, a private human spaceflight mission, attend a press conference at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. August 19, 2024. (REUTERS/Joe Skipper / Reuters) Ticker Security Last Change Change % FOUR SHIFT4 PAYMENTS INC. 77.58 +1.67 +2.20%
Isaacman, 41, is bankrolling the Polaris mission, as he did his Inspiration4 flight with SpaceX in 2021.
The billionaire Isaacman, who is also a pilot, has declined to say how much he is paying for the missions, but they are likely to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, based on Crew Dragon's price of roughly $55 million a seat for other flights.
Jared Isaacman is the CEO of Shift4. (SpaceX / Fox News)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off with Polaris Dawn, a private human spaceflight mission with two crew members expected to attempt the first-ever private spacewalk, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. September 10, 2024. (REUTERS/Joe Skipper / Reuters)
The others in Polaris include mission pilot Scott Poteet, 50, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel, and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis, 30, and Anna Menon, 38, both senior engineers. Gillis also conducted a spacewalk after Isaacman completed his turn outside the capsule.
Reuters contributed to this report.