The highly anticipated Polaris Dawn mission, featuring the first commercial spacewalk, has been delayed once more. SpaceX announced late Tuesday that the launch, previously scheduled for Wednesday, has been pushed back to at least Friday due to unfavourable weather conditions at the splashdown site.
Polaris Dawn Dragoncapsule awaiting a Go ahead for launch Image Credit: SpaceX
The Crew Dragon spacecraft, carrying four civilians, will launch on a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A. However, the predicted bad weather off the coast of Florida, where the crew capsule will splash down at the end of the flight, has forced SpaceX to delay the launch.
Mission commander Jared Isaacman explained that the launch criteria are heavily constrained by forecasted splashdown weather conditions, and the team must be absolutely sure of reentry weather before launching. With no ISS rendezvous and limited life support consumables, the crew must wait for the best opportunity to ensure success.
The Polaris Dawn mission will take the Crew Dragon spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit, with a perigee of approximately 300 kilometers and an apogee of around 1,000 kilometers. This orbit will carry the crew higher than any astronauts have flown since the Apollo moon program.
During the mission, Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis will perform two spacewalks, also known as EVAs (extravehicular activities), using the "Skywalker" scaffold. The spacewalks will test the new SpaceX-designed pressure suits, which are intended to be more comfortable and easier to use than traditional spacesuits.
The primary goals of the demonstration are to test the suit's joints, mobility, and comfort to help SpaceX engineers develop lower-cost, easier-to-produce spacesuits for future missions. The crew will also test a high-speed laser communications system and conduct a battery of bio-medical experiments throughout the five-day flight to help researchers learn more about the effects of weightlessness.
The Crew Dragon spacecraft is equipped with a heat shield to protect it during reentry, and the crew will wear specially designed spacesuits to ensure their safety during the spacewalks. The spacecraft's life support systems are designed to sustain the crew for up to five days, and the crew will have access to food, water, and communication equipment throughout the mission.
As the wait continues, Isaacman expressed his gratitude for the support and understanding of the mission's challenges. "Sometimes, the hardest journeys require the most patience, and we're ready to wait for the right moment," he wrote on social media.
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