Elon Musk’s SpaceX Launches First Ever All-Civilian Flight to Orbit
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has launched the first-ever All-Civilian Flight to orbit on early Thursday morning.
The three-day expedition is the first mission to space without any professional astronauts on board.
The mission is aiming for a maximum orbital altitude of 360 miles above Earth, higher than the International Space Station or Hubble Space Telescope, according to SpaceX.
SpaceX launches four civilians into orbit on historic Inspiration4 flight https://t.co/QNbfhXT7JH pic.twitter.com/dB2qVjPug1
— SPACE.com (@SPACEdotcom) September 16, 2021
The Crew Dragon capsule will spend three days circling Earth before re-entering the atmosphere and splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Florida, according to SpaceX.
View from Dragon’s cupola pic.twitter.com/Z2qwKZR2lK
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 16, 2021
Who are the passengers on the All-Civilian Flight to orbit:
SpaceX’s first private flight is being led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, 38, who bankrolled the entire trip. Isaacman, a billionaire tech entrepreneur from New Jersey, chartered Inspiration4, the all-civilian SpaceX flight.
29-year-old Hayley Arceneaux, a bone cancer survivor who now works as a physician assistant at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Arceneaux will act as the crew’s chief medical officer and becomes the youngest American to fly in space.
Chris Sembroski, a 42-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran and aerospace data engineer. Samborski won his seat in a charity drive to raise money for St. Jude.
51-year-old Sian Proctor, a geoscientist and licensed pilot.
Congratulations to the world's 4 newest astronauts! Well-done to safely get them there, @SpaceX! pic.twitter.com/kBWLqvcvqe
— Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) September 16, 2021
