ThePolaris program is aprivate spaceflight program organized by entrepreneurJared Isaacman. Building on his experience as commander of theInspiration4 mission—the first all-civilian spaceflight—Isaacman contracted withSpaceX to establish Polaris. The program involves two missions using SpaceX'sCrew Dragon spacecraft and is planned to culminate in the first crewed launch onStarship. The first mission,Polaris Dawn, launched in 2024 and featured the first commercialspacewalk. After being nominated to beAdministrator of NASA, Isaacman pledged that, if confirmed, he would cancel his contract with SpaceX for the additional missions, to remove a potentialconflict of interest with one of the agency's biggest contractors.[1]
On 10 September 2024, ThePolaris Dawn mission propelled Isaacman and his crew of three—Scott Poteet,Sarah Gillis, andAnna Menon—to an elliptical orbit 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) away from Earth. This was the farthest anyone had been from Earth since NASA'sApollo program. They passed through parts of theVan Allen radiation belt to study thehealth effects of space radiation and spaceflight on the human body.[2] Later in the mission, with a lower apogee, Isaacman and Gillis successfully completed the first commercialspacewalk and tested the mobility and functionality of SpaceX's EVA spacesuit.[4]
The second mission in the Polaris Program will launch via aFalcon 9 Block 5 vehicle with aCrew Dragon 2 capsule. SpaceX and Polaris had studied a crewed mission to lift theHubble Space Telescope into a higher orbit to prevent it from burning up in theatmosphere,[5][6] but this option was rejected by NASA in June 2024.[7] Data obtained through Polaris Dawn will inform the objectives and timing of Mission II.[7]
The third Polaris mission was set to be the first crewed launch onStarship, SpaceX's next-generation launch system.[7] Starship was in early flight testing as of December 2024 and was expected to carry crew after making at least 100 successful cargo flights, though this was not a firm requirement.[8] This is the final listed flight of the Polaris Program.[9][10]
^Foust, Jeff (8 February 2023)."Shotwell says SpaceX ready for Starship static-fire test".SpaceNews.Archived from the original on 15 September 2024. Retrieved15 September 2024.[Shotwell] said she expected Starship to fly at least 100 times before it carries people for the first time [...] In her later conversation with reporters, she called that 100-flight milestone a "great goal" but suggested it was not a requirement.
