Tag Archives: spacewalk

NASA Astronauts Venture Outside the Space Station for Fifth All-Female Spacewalk

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The astronaut missed during the first all-female spaceship due to a sizing issue with the space suits. Six years later, I finally got my chance on Thursday.

NASA’s Anne McClain ventured out from the International Space Station alongside Nichole Ayers. Both are military officers and pilots who returned instead of going to the Orbit Lab in March with two other astronauts. Now, I’m back home.

Just before floating out, McClain spotted a loose string on the index finger of her right glove. Mission Control briefly postponed the launch to ensure her glove was secure.

During the mission, the duo prepared the space station for a new solar panel and adjusted the antenna at the 260-mile-high complex.

On Wednesday evening, the space station needed to be elevated slightly to avoid debris: remnants of a 20-year-old Chinese rocket.

McClain, an army colonel and helicopter pilot, was originally set to participate in the first all-female spacewalk in 2019, but the medium-sized suit was insufficient. The historic mission was accomplished by Christina Koch and Jessica Meir. This latest outing marks the fifth time a woman has gone outside the spacecraft in a 60-year history.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers prepare for launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 14.
Craig Bailey / USA Today Network

Koch is set to become the first woman to fly to the moon. Along with three male astronauts, she will orbit the moon without landing next year as part of NASA’s Artemis program, the successor to Apollo.

Currently, men continue to outnumber women in NASA’s astronaut corps.

Out of NASA’s 47 active astronauts, 20 are women. Among the seven astronauts now aboard the space station, McClain and Ayers are the only females. This marks Ayers’ first mission, while McClain is on her third.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

SpaceX Crew Makes History with First ‘Stand-Up’ Private Spacewalk During Polaris Dawn Mission

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Jared Isaacman looks out the hatch of the Dragon capsule.

SpaceX

SpaceX made history today when its private astronauts conducted the first-ever private spacewalk as part of the Polaris Dawn mission.

As SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft orbited Earth at an altitude of about 740 km at a speed of more than 25,000 km per hour, the two astronauts partially ejected from the spacecraft, one at a time.

The four-man crew began evacuating the cabin at 10:31 GMT, eventually manually opening the hatch at approximately 10:50 GMT. All crew members were wearing new SpaceX spacesuits that have been thoroughly tested on Earth but not in orbit.

Jared Isaacman, the mission commander, head of SpaceX's Polaris program and billionaire co-financier, was the first person to step out of the spacecraft and look down at Earth. “It certainly is a perfect world from up here,” Isaacman said, lifting his head and torso from the capsule.

Isaacman then went through a series of suit mobility and safety checks before returning to his seat in the spacecraft a few minutes later, after which Crew Dragon fired its thrusters to maintain an optimal orbit and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis performed a spacewalk.

Neither Isaacman nor Gillis fully exited the spacecraft, making the event technically a stand-up extravehicular activity (SEVA) rather than a full spacewalk. Previous SpaceX promotional materials for the mission stated: Astronauts completely exit the capsule.

While all previous spacewalks to date have been conducted by government-trained astronauts, the Polaris Dawn crew will be all civilians: along with Isaacman and Gillis are retired U.S. Air Force test pilot Scott Poteet and SpaceX engineer Anna Menon.

Isaacman also took part in SpaceX's groundbreaking flight in 2021, which was the first orbital spaceflight with only private citizens on board. That flight used the exact same Crew Dragon spacecraft as the latest mission.

SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission is reminiscent of earlier space programs of the 1960s and 1970s because the Crew Dragon capsule does not have an airlock, making it one of the most dangerous spacewalks ever attempted.

Once SEVA is complete, the remainder of the mission will see the crew spend up to two more days in orbit before returning to Earth.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

First private spacewalk launched by SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission

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Polaris Dawn launch

SpaceX

SpaceX launched the Polaris Dawn mission to attempt the first-ever private spacewalk, and one of the most dangerous spacewalks ever attempted.

The four-person crew will spend up to five days in Earth orbit, with two crew members performing an extravehicular activity (EVA) on the third day. During this EVA, the spacecraft will be depressurized for about two hours. The two remaining crew members will also need to wear space suits.

This is different from other modern spacewalks, which typically use an airlock to seal the craft off the vacuum of space while the astronauts are outside. The Crew Dragon capsule used in this mission has no airlock, making it more similar to the early days of spaceflight in the 1960s and 1970s. Additionally, all previous spacewalks have been conducted by government-trained astronauts, while the Polaris Dawn crew is civilian.

Although the spacesuits have been thoroughly tested on Earth, they are a new design, and the risks are compounded by the fact that the flight will be farther from Earth than any other human spaceflight since the end of the Apollo program in 1972.

Inside the Crew Dragon capsule

SpaceX

The flight’s mission commander is SpaceX’s Polaris program chief and billionaire co-founder Jared Isaacman. The rest of the crew is retired Air Force test pilot Scott Poteat and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

The Crew Dragon capsule used on this flight was named “Resilience” and was its third launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. The reusable Falcon 9 first stage returned to Earth and landed on SpaceX’s Just Read the Instructions drone over the Atlantic Ocean.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsules are also used to transport astronauts and supplies to and from the International Space Station, and one of them is scheduled to return NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams to Earth in early 2025 after they were stranded when their launch vehicle, the Boeing Starliner, encountered problems.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

First private spacewalk to be featured in SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission

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A groundbreaking space mission known as Polaris Dawn is set to take off next week with four private citizens on board. The mission is expected to feature the first ever spacewalk conducted entirely by a civilian crew.

The commander of the mission is billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, who is also the founder and CEO of Shift4, a payment processing company. Polaris Dawn is the first of three spaceflights funded and organized by Isaacman in collaboration with SpaceX, collectively known as the Polaris Program. This will be the first private SpaceX mission to reach orbit in 2021.

The crew of three includes pilot Scott Kidd-Poteet, a retired Air Force Lt. Col., and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. They will be venturing into space aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule on a Falcon 9 rocket for a planned five-day mission.

One of the highlights of the mission will be a spacewalk on the third day, where two crew members will exit the capsule via cables and spend up to 20 minutes in space. This is a historic moment as until now, spacewalks have been carried out exclusively by astronauts from government space agencies.

During the spacewalk, the Crew Dragon capsule will be fully exposed to the vacuum of space at an altitude of 435 miles above Earth. To prepare for this event, all four astronauts will don SpaceX-designed spacesuits for testing and future long-duration missions.

The mission aims to inspire people to dream big and push the boundaries of human exploration beyond Earth. The crew, including Isaacman, have undergone extensive training over the past two years in preparation for this momentous journey.

In addition to conducting science experiments and testing technology during the mission, the crew will also raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, continuing Isaacman’s philanthropic efforts in space.

Details regarding the cost, objectives, and timeline of future Polaris flights have not been disclosed by Isaacman at this time.

Source: www.nbcnews.com