In a groundbreaking event, SpaceX successfully conducted its first spacewalk early Thursday morning, marking a significant milestone for the company with the Polaris Dawn mission. The spacewalk featured two crew members, Jared Isaacman and Sarah Gillis, who ventured outside the SpaceX Dragon capsule named “Resilience.” This event was notable as it was the first time civilians, rather than professional government astronauts, participated in such an activity.
During the spacewalk, Isaacman, who funded and commanded the mission, reflected on the view of Earth, remarking, “Back at home we all have a lot of work to do, but from here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world.” The mission underscores SpaceX’s ambition to facilitate human exploration of other planets.
The space suits, developed over two years specifically for this mission, were tested in the harsh conditions of space. This development was part of the broader Polaris Program, spearheaded by Isaacman, who is also the billionaire CEO of the payment processing firm Shift4. The mission also marked the first time SpaceX employees participated directly, with mission specialist Gillis and medical officer Anna Menon joining the crew.
The spacewalk lasted approximately two hours, during which Isaacman and Gillis each spent about seven minutes outside the capsule, assessing the new spacesuits’ mobility. Launched on Tuesday, the Polaris Dawn mission achieved an orbit of over 1,400 kilometers above Earth—the farthest humans have traveled since the Apollo missions. The mission also includes conducting around 40 scientific and research experiments and fundraising activities for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Isaacman, who previously led the Inspiration4 space mission in 2021, aims to expand the possibilities of private spaceflight through the Polaris Program. He expressed his vision in a conversation with CNBC prior to the mission, stating, “This is the inspiration side of it … anything that’s different than what we’ve seen over the last 20 or 30 years is what gets people excited, thinking: ‘Well if this is what I’m seeing today, I wonder what tomorrow’s gonna look like or a year after.’”
