SpaceX is gearing up for one of its most unique missions yet, launching four private astronauts into polar orbit to observe the planet’s most remote regions from above.
The Fram2 mission, named in honor of the original ship that reached both Earth’s Arctic and Antarctic regions, is set for launch no earlier than Monday, March 31 at 11:20 p.m. ET. The mission will venture out where no other human spaceflight mission has gone before, flying over the planet’s polar regions at an altitude of around 265 to 280 miles (425 to 450 kilometers) above the ground.
A four-person crew will ride on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, lifting off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Chun Wang of Malta, who founded the Bitcoin mining companies f2pool and stakefish, is leading Fram2 and is reportedly funding the mission. The remaining crew includes Jannicke Mikkelsen, a Norwegian cinematographer; Eric Philips, an Australian polar adventurer; and Rabea Rogge, a German robotics researcher. Despite their eclectic backgrounds, the private astronauts are all first-timers when it comes to spaceflight.
The crew will be the first astronauts to orbit over Earth’s poles, following a trajectory no human mission has attempted before. “This new flight trajectory will unlock new possibilities for human spaceflight and provide a deeper understanding about our planet and its polar regions,” a Fram2 news release read, according to Florida Today. “With the exception of the Apollo lunar missions, the North and South Poles have not been fully visible to other astronauts in orbit, including those onboard the International Space Station.”
The four astronauts will spend three to five days on board SpaceX’s Dragon crew spacecraft, gazing down from a polar orbit at an inclination of about 60 to 90 degrees to the equator. From their unique vantage point, the crew will study the aurora-like phenomenon known as STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement), known for its hazy purple and green streaks across the sky.
The mission will also include an experiment that will attempt to grow mushrooms in space. Launched by the Australian firm FOODiQ Global, the research payload will aim to grow a crop of oyster mushrooms in microgravity as a way to provide nutrition for future human missions to the Moon and Mars, The Guardian reported.
SpaceX continues to push the limits of private spaceflight. Its last private mission, Polaris Dawn, pulled off the first commercial spacewalk in history, with two astronauts venturing outside of the Dragon vehicle and into the vacuum of space.
Fram2 carries its own set of risks. Polar orbits are generally used by Earth-observing satellites and reconnaissance missions. The orbital path of the ISS passes over 90% of the Earth, with the exception of latitudes north of 51.6 degrees in the northern hemisphere, or south of 51.6 degrees in the southern hemisphere. Flying through the polar region, however, is generally avoided in spaceflight due to the higher-than-usual radiation exposure, including the risks associated with increased auroral activity, according to NASA.
Fingers are crossed that the crew of four amateur astronauts can pull off a successful mission over Earth’s poles.
