2024-09-15
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after completing the first commercial spacewalk, the dragon spacecraft successfully returned to earth
at 15:36 beijing time on september 15, the journey of polaris dawn came to an end, and the crew returned safely and splashed down smoothly on the coast of florida's dry tortugas. the mission ended successfully, but the pace of human exploration will not stop.
the hatch of the dragon spacecraft opened, and the four-person crew of the polaris dawn greeted with a smile.
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at 17:23 beijing time on september 10, spacex successfully launched the polaris dawn into low-earth orbit at the lc-39a launch site at the kennedy space center in florida.
the falcon 9 first launched the dragon spacecraft into an elliptical orbit of 190 x 1,200 kilometers, where it flew around the earth about 8 times and then rose to an apogee of 1,400 kilometers.
this is a photo of the skywalker of the dragon spacecraft and earth shortly after the polaris crew was launched into an orbit of approximately 190x1216 kilometers. the skywalker equipped with the dragon spacecraft is designed to help the crew test the spacesuits during spacewalks. credit: spacex
skywalker comes from the skywalker family in the star wars series, especially iconic characters like luke skywalker, who have a heroic or epic feel through scenes overlooking the earth.
shortly after liftoff, the crew of the polaris dawn began a two-day pre-breathing period in preparation for a spacewalk on september 12, the third day of the mission.
during this time, the dragon spacecraft's pressure is slowly depressurized while cabin oxygen levels rise, helping to purge nitrogen from the crew's blood. this will help reduce the risk of decompression sickness (dcs) during spacewalks.
polaris dawn mission day one
about two hours into the first day of flight, the crew enjoyed their first meal in orbit, began their first scientific research, and tested the starlink satellites, a process that lasted about 3.5 hours.
the dragon spacecraft flew through the south atlantic anomaly (saa) for the first time, an area where the earth's magnetic field is weaker, so more high-energy particles from space can approach earth more closely.
at noon, the crew rested for about eight hours to prepare for the busy work of the next day. the most exciting thing is that in the first orbital flight, the dragon spacecraft reached an apogee of about 1216 kilometers.
currently, the polaris dawn team has unlocked an apogee of 1,400.7 kilometers. after flying around the earth about 6 times at this altitude, it will descend to an elliptical orbit of 170x700 kilometers to prepare for the first commercial spacewalk.
day 2 of the polaris dawn mission
on the second flight day of the polaris dawn mission, the spacecraft reached an apogee of more than 1,400 kilometers, the farthest human flight since the end of the apollo program more than 50 years ago, breaking the 1,373-kilometer earth orbit record set by gemini 11 more than 50 years ago. mission specialists sarah gillis and anna menon became the first women to reach this altitude. mission commander jared isaacman also paid tribute to nasa's artemis mission team.
Credit:SpaceX
after completing six earth orbits, the spacecraft performed a descent burn to adjust its orbit to approximately 190 x 700 kilometers in preparation for a spacewalk the next day. the crew also spent time verifying the functionality of their spacesuits in microgravity and preparing the cabin environment for spacewalk conditions.
Credit:SpaceX
in addition to preparing for the spacewalk, the crew also conducted scientific research focused on monitoring vision, changes in eye health, studying the effects of fluid shifts and microgravity on blood flow, and evaluating how drugs are metabolized in space.
in addition, the crew met with representatives of the folds of honor organization, which pays tribute to deceased and disabled u.s. military personnel and first responders. anna also read her book "a kiss from space" to patients and their families at st. jude hospital and held a question-and-answer session.this is a kiss from space created by the editor using ai）
at the end of the flight day, the crew spoke to their families via starlink and prepared a special message for fans before resting for the upcoming commercial spacewalk.
on the second day of the polaris dawn mission, the dragon spacecraft reached a maximum altitude of 1,408.1 kilometers, breaking the 1,373-kilometer earth orbit record set by gemini 11 more than 50 years ago.
polaris dawn mission day 3
at 19:58 beijing time on september 12 (7:58 a.m. eastern time on thursday), the crew of the polaris dawn successfully completed the world's first spacewalk (eva) from a dragon spacecraft at an altitude of 732.2 kilometers.
shortly after entering space on tuesday, the crew began a two-day pre-breathing period designed to prevent decompression sickness and prepare the crew to acclimate to the environment of the eva spacesuits by gradually reducing the cabin pressure of the dragon spacecraft and increasing the oxygen concentration.
then on thursday, the crew put on their spacesuits and began to rotate the dragon spacecraft seats, adjust the weight of the spacesuits, and check the heads-up display and helmet camera. the 106-minute spacewalk officially began at 18:12 beijing time on september 12 (6:12 eastern time), and the spacesuit pressurization was started, the nitrogen purge process also began, and pure oxygen (o2) began to flow into the spacesuit. at the same time, the secondary oxygen flow is mainly used to provide cooling for the spacesuit, which is particularly important during spacewalks.
after completing the leak check of the space suit, the crew and the ground team approved the dragon spacecraft to begin venting, reducing the cabin pressure from about 8 psi to less than 1 psi, close to the vacuum of space. at the same time, the dragon spacecraft adjusted its tail cabin to face the sun in preparation for the hatch opening.
mission commander jared isaacman opened the hatch, and the four astronauts were exposed to the vacuum of space for the first time. jared and mission specialist sarah gillis left the spacecraft separately and performed a series of spacesuit mobility demonstrations to test the performance of the spacesuit in the vacuum of space. mission pilot kidd porter and mission specialist anna menon remained in their seats, managing the air supply pipes of the spacesuits and monitoring the life support system and telemetry data through the dragon spacecraft's display screen.
after they completed their respective evas, the hatch closed, the dragon was re-pressurized to 14 psi, and the cabin oxygen and pressure levels were confirmed, officially completing the spacesuit test, as well as the first commercial spacewalk and the first eva from a dragon spacecraft.
throughout the spacewalk, the dragon spacecraft's cameras and spacesuit helmet cameras provided the crew with a stunning visual experience as the spacecraft's orbital altitude ranged from 184.9 to 732.2 kilometers.
after the spacewalk, the crew rested and enjoyed a well-earned meal before posting to x-platform (formerly twitter) for the first time from space via starlink high-speed internet. finally, they checked in with their families and settled in before preparing to enter the rest cycle on the fourth day of the flight, ending the day's work.
polaris dawn mission day 4
after an exciting and historic spacewalk on september 12, the crew spent much of the fourth flight day focused on science and research. polaris dawn collaborated with 31 institutions from around the world to create a strong and diverse portfolio of scientific research during spaceflight. since entering orbit, the crew has been involved in research projects including evaluating the effects of microgravity on the human airway and venous system, and using ultrasound and smart watches to study how blood flow restriction alters blood flow in space.
as humans become a spacefaring civilization, having the right support systems in place in the event of a medical emergency is key. the polaris dawn crew tested the tempus pro, a commercial off-the-shelf device that collects and consolidates health measurements (including blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, temperature, etc.), as well as ultrasound imaging capabilities. the crew was able to use it to assess and compare vital sign data collected before flight with vital sign data collected during orbit.
the crew is also working with multiple partners to study the effects of microgravity on eye health to help prevent and diagnose and treat conditions related to spaceflight associated neuro-ocular syndrome (sans), which many astronauts experience while in space. watch the science and research video they shared earlier today for more updates from the crew!
additionally, the crew continues to test and demonstrate starlink connectivity on the dragon spacecraft. one of the biggest connectivity tests includes the ability to quickly share files. earlier this week, the crew recorded mission specialist sarah gillis performing john williams' "rey's theme" on violin.
after the recording was completed, the crew successfully transmitted the files back to earth via starlink, helping to create this special music event called "harmony of resilience."
the team on earth synchronized gillis' video and audio with various recorded orchestral performances around the world, including in los angeles, where legendary composer john williams and the entire polaris dawn crew were present. these performances took place between mid-2023 and early 2024.
the crew wrapped up their workday and are preparing for their final day in space, which will include more research and starlink testing.
polaris dawn mission day 5
the crew spent their final full day in orbit working on and completing the science goals of the polaris dawn mission, connecting with one of the training teams, and connecting with the spacex family.
two scientific highlights of the day focused on preventive and life-saving research — which included identifying and understanding the risk of kidney stone formation in microgravity, and developing and validating procedures for performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (cpr) on the dragon spacecraft.
throughout the day, the crew continued testing starlink, including more than 40 minutes of uninterrupted video calls with the spacex team on earth as dragon crossed the east coast of the united states, the atlantic ocean, and the cape of good hope. dragon and the event’s partner starlink satellites maintained a laser connection during 16 draco thruster firings.
the crew also connected with air force members who helped them conduct a week-long solo skydiving training at the u.s. air force academy in colorado.
the crew took some time to connect with their families and begin preparations for crew dragon's cabin's reentry and splashdown before preparing to enter the mission's final sleep cycle.
the dragon spacecraft and its crew are scheduled to splash down off the coast of florida's dry tortugas at approximately 15:36 beijing time on september 15 (3:36 a.m. eastern time).
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