New Delhi: On September 15, four private citizens will be carried to Earth’s orbit, in the Crew Dragon Resilience Spacecraft, as part of the Inspiration4 Mission, which is going to be the world's first all-civilian spaceflight.
Inspiration4 is the third billionaire-led spaceflight of 2021, after Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, and Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin launched tourists into space this year. However, the flights of Bezos and Branson were suborbital.
When will the launch take place?
The liftoff is scheduled to take place at 8 pm EDT on Wednesday, September 15 (5:30 am IST, Thursday, September 16), according to the Inspiration4 official website. The launch window has been narrowed down to five hours, keeping in mind weather forecasts for the launch site. The liftoff time was decided by considering additional time for final preparations, vehicle checkouts and data reviews. A backup window is also available, and will open at 8:05 pm EDT, Thursday, September 16 or 5:35 am IST on Friday, September 17.
The mission is a three-day trip in which the civilians will blast off into space atop a Falcon 9 rocket.
The US Space Force's 45th Weather Squadron predicts the chance of favourable conditions for liftoff at the launch complex to be 70 per cent, according to a September 12 mission update.
How to watch Inspiration4 Launch?
The launch will take place from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida. This was the embarkation point for the Apollo and Space Shuttle Missions, and also the Crew-Dragon Demo 2 Mission. The crew will splash down in the Atlantic, after circling the Earth for three days.
Feel the Heat Launch Packages are available for people who are interested to view the launch at the Kennedy Space Center, and these tickets must be purchased in advance. The mission will also be live-streamed on the official YouTube channel of SpaceX.
Who are the four civilians?
Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski, and Dr Sian Proctor are the four civilians selected for this mission, and they represent the mission pillars of Leadership, Hope, Generosity and Prosperity, respectively. Isaacman, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Shift4 Payments, is the benefactor and commander of the mission.
The crew will have no role in spacecraft operation, and the titles given are honorary.
The mission has two goals, one is inspiring science in orbit, and the other is conducting scientific research in orbit. The four crew members will raise awareness and funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a leading paediatric cancer center. They will also conduct research to advance science and medicine for human health during spaceflight. This health research will help further human exploration of space, as mentioned in the Inspiration4 website.
The Crew Dragon spacecraft will cross more than 90 per cent of the world's population during the three-day trip.
The cargo consists of crew essentials as well as scientific equipment designed for microgravity research and experimentation. The crew will perform experiments to expand the knowledge of the universe, and conduct valuable research and inspire projects which otherwise can't overcome the high barriers of traditional space-based research, by providing access to space, according to the Inspiration4 website.