The mission will use a SpaceX Dragon capsule equipped with an observation dome. (Representative)
Washington:
SpaceX aims to break new barriers in polar exploration with the first manned space mission above Earth’s poles — a private flight commanded by a crypto entrepreneur later this year, the company said Tuesday.
The mission, named “Fram2” after a 19th century polar expedition schooner, is expected to last three to five days and was purchased for an undisclosed sum by Chun Wang, a wealthy bitcoin pioneer who founded f2pool and stakefish.
He is accompanied by three polar experts: Norwegian filmmaker Jannicke Mikkelsen, German robotics researcher Rabea Rogge and Australian polar adventurer Eric Philips.
It’s the aerospace industry’s latest foray into private space tourism, which has grown rapidly in the United States in recent years.
“From the mission proposal, planning, trajectory design to crew selection, everything was done by the customer,” Mr Wang, reportedly born and raised in China but now a Maltese citizen, said in a post on X.
“A new chapter in space exploration is unfolding before our eyes,” he said.
Satellites have flown over the poles, but because of the Earth’s rotation, reaching them may require more force, while radiation could also be a problem, astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell told AFP.
“To date, the highest inclination reached by human spaceflight was the Soviet Vostok 6 mission, at 65 degrees,” the mission website said.
The poles are not visible from the International Space Station (ISS).
The mission will use a SpaceX Dragon capsule equipped with an observation dome. The craft will fly at an altitude of between 265 and 280 miles (425 and 450 kilometers), according to SpaceX, owned by erratic billionaire Elon Musk.
The crew plans to conduct research, including taking the first X-rays in space and studying an aurora-like light phenomenon, SpaceX said.
SpaceX has flown thirteen crewed missions in the past four years. It carries NASA astronauts to the ISS, but has also carried out several space tourism missions, including the first in 2021, called Inspiration4, funded by US billionaire Jared Isaacman.
“Until 2021, space missions were solely the prerogative of governments,” Wang wrote, adding: “Then @inspiration4x came along and everything changed.”
SpaceX will launch a new private mission, Polaris Dawn, on August 26 with four crew members on board, including Isaacman.
It is planned to host the first private space walk.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
