The commercial Polaris Dawn mission from Jared Isaacman to be fulfilled by SpaceX's Crew Dragon is now facing a delay to its upcoming launch that was supposedly taking place this week. It would bring four civilian astronauts to go on a five-day trip in the cosmos that will involve a historic spacewalk for these nonprofessional space troops.
It was revealed that the reason for this delay was because of the NASA Commercial Crew program's upcoming launch with SpaceX on the Crew-9 mission.
SpaceX Polaris Dawn Mission Faces Delay for July Flight
Jared Isaacman via X
The latest from Jared Isaacman revealed that there will be a delay for the upcoming Polaris Dawn mission's launch with SpaceX and its Crew Dragon and Falcon rockets, according to an interview with Channel NewsAsia. It also follows the recent setback faced by SpaceX on its Falcon 9 after a mishap that happened during the mid-July flight that led to it being grounded by the FAA.
Over the weekend, SpaceX confirmed that the issue has been resolved and that it was cleared for a flight as soon as last Saturday, with a mission deploying Starlink satellites taking place.
However, this delay on Isaacman's return to space via Polaris Dawn will not be a long wait, as he confirmed that itwould see a launch window this late August.
Furthermore, it was revealed that another cause of this delay is because of SpaceX prioritizing its NASA Commercial Crew mission that would launch the Crew-9 mission this August 18. This mission would use SpaceX's Crew Dragon and Falcon rockets to bring a new batch of NASA astronauts to the International Space Station, going ahead of Polaris Dawn.
SpaceX and its Commercial Space Program
SpaceX and Jared Isaacman have gone on a mission before which centers on a commercial space program that brought nonprofessional astronauts to the mesmerizing view of the planet from outside of the planet. This mission was previously known as the Inspiration4, with one of their goals centering on bringing civilians to space, as well as raising funds for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.
In 2022, Isaacman launched a program called Polaris Dawn, with a newfound goal of exploring space further, enabling civilian astronauts to reach farther than any nonprofessional astronaut has reached before. One of the most significant features of this program was a spacewalk for its crew members over its five-day mission, but it has seen delays as it was first meant for a 2022 launch but was later moved to 2023.
Despite the previous delay, the July 2024 supposed launch for the Polaris Dawn was recently moved again by SpaceX, but this was meant to make way for the Commercial Crew mission's Crew-9 launch. That being said, it would no longer be a massive wait as SpaceX and Polaris Dawn will launch come late August, soon to demonstrate a revolutionary spacewalk.
