• About
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Write for us
  • Contact
  • Terms of service
Thursday, May 26, 2022
The Millennial Source
TMS
Home WORLD

SpaceX is looking to launch the world’s first all-civilian spaceflight as early as 2021

byJoseph Lyttleton
February 3, 2021
in WORLD
SpaceX is looking to launch the world’s first all-civilian spaceflight as early as 2021

Source: Hannibal Hanschke, Reuters

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Linkedin
Monday’s announcement of the planned commercial spaceflight was dampened a bit the following day, when a prototype of SpaceX’s flagship space vessel, Starship, crashed and exploded upon landing.

By the end of 2021, it is possible that the first fully commercial spaceflight will have taken place, marking a new phase in humanity’s exploration of outer space. At least, that’s the goal of SpaceX and its billionaire chief executive officer, Elon Musk, who announced on February 1 that the company intended to launch an orbital spaceflight completely manned by civilians, possibly by the end of this year.

While civilians have flown to space before, this multiday flight would be the first to have no government-employed astronauts onboard. The mission will be led by Jared Isaacman, an American billionaire, but the three other members of the team have yet to be announced.

Musk has long stated his goal for SpaceX is to make spaceflight cheaper, while also providing a potential escape hatch for humanity if the earth becomes uninhabitable. To that end, SpaceX has been focusing on perfecting rockets that can land after being launched and then be reused. In February 2020, SpaceX announced its goal of being in the “space tourism” game by the end of 2021.

Monday’s announcement of the planned commercial spaceflight was dampened a bit the following day, when a prototype of SpaceX’s flagship space vessel, Starship, crashed and exploded upon landing. Though this was the second such explosion for the Starship prototype in as many months, the company remains optimistic for their ambitious goals.

The flight of Inspiration4

In the announcement of its planned launch, SpaceX revealed the name of the ship: Inspiration4. The Inspiration4 will be a Falcon 9 vessel, described by the company as an “orbital class rocket capable of reflight.”

SpaceX has touted the “reusability” of the Falcon 9 vessels, stating “Reusability allows SpaceX to refly the most expensive parts of the rocket, which in turn drives down the cost of space access.” The Falcon 9 is capable of carrying both people and “payloads” (e.g. equipment, supplies). It is the first manned rocket that, at least theoretically, can be launched multiple times.

The exact date of the flight has not yet been determined, but the announcement states it will occur “no earlier than the fourth quarter of this year.” When the mission does take place, it will launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and conclude with an ocean landing off the coast of Florida. The mission will last several days and include multiple 90-minute orbits around Earth.

The crew of Inspiration4

Jared Isaacman, who is the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, a payment processing company, has already been named as the leader of the mission. Isaacman is a jet pilot who can fly commercial and military aircraft. He is also the founder of Draken International, a private company that provides tactical fighter aircraft and training to pilots.

Isaacman represents one of the four “pillars” of the mission: Leadership. The other three pillars are Hope, Generosity and Prosperity. While the other crew members who represent those pillars have not been announced, Hope is said to be an ambassador of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The mission will raise money and awareness for St. Jude, which seeks cures for children’s illnesses.

The Generosity pillar will be filled by someone who has donated US$10 or more to St. Jude, while Prosperity will be an entrepreneur who has used Shift4 to handle their business payments.

The crew of civilians will be trained for spaceflight and operating in zero gravity. They will also receive training in emergency preparedness and rigorous physical and stress tests.

The crash of Starship SN9

A major part of all scientific advancement is trial and error and so it has been for SpaceX. While the company has successfully launched and landed multiple rockets, including landing its 50th rocket in March 2020, the company has had its share of public misfires.

On February 2, the flight of SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft ended in an explosion, or in the parlance of the company’s description of the flight, a “RUD” (rapid unscheduled disassembly). The explosion of SN9 in Boca Chica, Texas came almost two months after the SN8 experienced the same fate. The SN10 waits in the wings for its chance to launch and, hopefully, land.

New high-speed footage! Starship SN9's flight ends with a fiery explosion… and a methane-fueled fire tornado 🔥🌪️ What a test!

Watch the full 4k clip: https://t.co/CnTFTKYzRL

Team shout @Erdayastronaut @SpacePadreIsle #Starship #SN9 pic.twitter.com/ZbRbq525Ye

— Cosmic Perspective (@considercosmos) February 3, 2021

At the time of the SN8 explosion, Musk took the setback in stride, tweeting, “Mars, here we come!!” Indeed, SpaceX’s write-up of Starship SN9’s high-altitude flight test on Tuesday focuses more on what was accomplished and learned from the flight than the crash:

“These test flights are all about improving our understanding and development of a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo on long-duration, interplanetary flights and help humanity return to the Moon, and travel to Mars and beyond.”

Which is to say, though an explosion is not the desired ending for any spaceflight – certainly not one with human passengers – these test flights are all part of a process that could result in regular civilian space travel being commonplace within a generation.

The Starship hard landings reminds me of all those attempts to land the Falcon 9. Explosion after explosion until they finally pulled it off. Elon said at the time success would be when landings were so routine they were no longer news. And here we are. https://t.co/im4pPRRzmD

— Christian Davenport (@wapodavenport) February 3, 2021

Have a tip or story? Get in touch with our reporters at [email protected]

Like TMS? Subscribe to our free daily newsletter

Related

Tags: Longer readNorth America
ShareTweetShare

Latest Posts

Uvalde shooting

Texas shooting: 21 people confirmed dead; Biden says he’s “sick and tired” of US gun violence

May 26, 2022
SEC Wall Street

The US SEC investigates Wall Street over use of unapproved messaging apps

May 19, 2022
US recession

There is a “very, very high risk” of a US recession, says Goldman Sachs Chairman Lloyd Blankfein

May 17, 2022

US hikes rates by half-percentage point, rules out bigger future rate increases

May 5, 2022

What is the US Supreme Court abortion law leak, and why does it matter?

May 4, 2022

What you need to know about Pelosi’s secret trip to Kyiv

May 2, 2022

Warren Buffett is on a spending spree putting US$41 billion to work this quarter

May 2, 2022

Fed Chair Powell flags sharp rate hike next month

April 22, 2022

Goldman warns of a rate hike until inflation settles

January 23, 2022

SUBSCRIBE TO THE TMS NEWSLETTER

By providing your email, you agree to our Privacy Policy

The Millennial Source Ltd. 2021

No Result
View All Result
  • Your daily briefing
  • About us
  • Explore
    • Startups
    • Climate change
    • Tech giants
    • Crypto
    • The future of work
    • Banking giants
    • Economy
  • Lifestyle
  • TMS archives
  • Write for us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy & Terms

© 2022 The Millennial Source Ltd.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

string(24) "jsonld single post debug"
The Millennial Source
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.