A tech billionaire stepped out of a SpaceX capsule hundreds of miles above Earth and conducted the first private spacewalk Thursday, a high-risk endeavor once reserved for professional astronauts.
Tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman partnered with SpaceX to test the company’s new spacesuits on his charter flight. The daring feat also featured the participation of SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis, who stepped out once Isaacman was safely back inside the craft.
This spacewalk was simple and quick (the hatch was open for just half an hour), compared with the lengthy walks NASA does. Astronauts on the International Space Station often need to move around the sprawling complex to make repairs, always traveling in pairs and carrying equipment. Spacewalks on the station can last seven to eight hours; this one lasted less than two hours.
Isaacman was the first to appear, joining a small elite group of spacewalkers that until now included only professional astronauts from a dozen countries.
“At home, we all have a lot of work to do, but from here, it sure looks like a perfect world,” Isaacman said as the capsule rose over the South Pacific. Onboard cameras captured his silhouette, waist-high in the hatch, with the blue Earth below.
The commercial spacewalk was the main focus of the five-day flight funded by Isaacman and Elon Musk’s company, and the culmination of years of development aimed at colonizing Mars and other planets.
The four on board donned new spacewalk suits to protect them from the harsh vacuum. The launch took place Tuesday from Florida, and they went farther from Earth than any other launch by NASA astronauts. The orbit was cut in half (to 740 kilometers) for the spacewalk.
This first spacewalk test involved more stretching than walking. Isaacman kept one hand or foot attached to the capsule the entire time while flexing his arms and legs to see how the spacesuit held up. The hatch had a walker-like structure to provide additional support.
After about ten minutes outside, Isaacman was replaced by Gillis to perform the same movements. The SpaceX engineer bobbed up and down in weightlessness, no higher than knee-high as she exited the capsule, while rotating her arms and sending reports to Mission Control.
Each had 12-foot (3.6-meter) tethers but they were not deployed and left dangling at the end, unlike on the space station, where astronauts typically float in a much lower orbit.
More and more wealthy passengers are shelling out huge sums to ride aboard private rockets and experience a few minutes of weightlessness. Others have spent tens of millions to stay in space for days or even weeks. Space experts and risk analysts say it’s inevitable that some will seek the thrill of spacewalks, considered one of the most dangerous parts of spaceflight after launch and reentry, but also the most thrilling.
This operation was planned down to the minute and there was little room for error. Testing new spacesuits on a ship that did not conduct spacewalks increased the risk, as did the fact that the entire capsule was exposed to the vacuum of space.
There were some technical problems. Isaacman had to open the hatch manually instead of pressing a button on board. Before leaving, Gillis reported seeing bulges in the hatch seal.
Former Air Force Thunderbird pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet and SpaceX engineer Anna Menon remained strapped into their seats to monitor from inside. All four underwent intensive training before the trip.
It happened “in the blink of an eye,” said SpaceX commentator Kate Tice.
Congratulations poured in after the spacewalk concluded in one hour and 46 minutes, or one full rotation and then some around the Earth.
“Today’s success represents a major step forward for the commercial space industry,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said via X.
Isaacman, 41, chief executive and founder of the credit card processing company Shift4, has declined to say how much he spent on the flight. It was the first of three flights in a program he has dubbed Polaris; this one was called Polaris Dawn. For SpaceX’s inaugural private flight in 2021, he carried contest winners and a cancer survivor.
As of Thursday, only 263 people had performed a spacewalk, representing 12 countries. The first was Soviet Alexei Leonov in 1965, followed a few months later by NASA’s Ed White.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. We make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the post for any purpose.
We respect the intellectual property rights of content creators. If you are the owner of any material featured on our website and have concerns about its use, please contact us. We are committed to addressing any copyright issues promptly and will remove any material within 2 days of receiving a request from the rightful owner.