Being an astronaut isn’t just for astronauts anymore. Or, to be more precise, it’s not just for those trained up through their nation’s space agency. With enough money, private citizens can go up into space — and take a walk in it — thanks to Elon Musk’s private, commercial SpaceX program.
A billionaire from America has done just that, becoming the first human to do a commercial spacewalk. Jared Isaacman, 41, was teh mission commander on SpaceX’s historic Polaris Dawn mission, described as the riskiest yet for Musk’s company. Isaacman was testing the company’s new spacesuits when he went outside the spacecraft. Looking at the Earth, he said, “It looks like a perfect world.”
Isaacman is inside the Crew Dragon capsule orbiting the Earth at a height of 435 miles. Crew Dragon is also the capsule that will have to give a ride back to the ground for two American astronauts stranded on the International Space Station after Boeing’s Starliner capsule malfunctioned.
Those on the ground celebrated as they watched Isaacman’s spacewalk through the feed from his camera, which supplied a livestream of his 12-minute outing. Sarah Gillis, a 30-year-old SpaceX engineer, followed Isaacman outside.
Spacewalks are not cake walks. They are incredibly dangerous, and the smallest malfunction in a space suit can kill.
Isaacman and Gillis waved their arms about as they floated outside the Crew Dragon, and maneuvered themselves around to show how possible it was to use tools and perform work while in space.
The walk is primarily for the purpose of testing SpaceX’s equipment, particularly its new space suits. These are lighter and less bulky than those used by NASA. SpaceX engineer Erik Kraus said the company’s suits are like “armour made of fabric.”
This jaunt had extra risks as the astronauts departed from Crew Dragon, which does not have an airlock. Therefore the entire capsule needs to be depressurized before they leave, meaning that other crew aboard must also depend on spacesuits until the crew returns and air pressure is restored inside the craft.
To prepare, the crew has to go through what is called “pre-breathing.” This is when they inhale pure oxygen in order to get rid of all the nitrogen gas normally dissolved in the blood.
