SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn and Its Historic Mission

After multiple delays from its original August 26 launch date, including a helium leak on the launchpad and weeks of bad weather, the Polaris Dawn mission finally lifted off from Kennedy Space Center on September 10, 2024.

author: Economician

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4 minutes

category:technology

The Crew Dragon capsule is set to fly higher than any previous non-lunar mission, with crew members scheduled for the first-ever civilian spacewalk.

Today's launch proceeded flawlessly, featuring a sequence of critical events. The rocket was fueled on launchpad 39A—famous for its use in most historic Apollo missions. At 5:23 a.m., the Falcon 9 rocket took off. Two minutes and 40 seconds later, the first and second stages separated. Twelve minutes after launch, the Crew Dragon capsule detached from the rocket’s upper stage and continued its journey above Earth, heading towards the sunrise. Cheers erupted multiple times at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, during a live stream of the launch on X (formerly Twitter).