SpaceX announces charity-focused ‘all-civilian’ mission to space
A SpaceX rocket and spacecraft will be used to send an “all-civilian” crew to space at the end of 2021. Scheduled to launch in October…
[Feb. 1, 2021: Maggie Tillman]
A SpaceX rocket and spacecraft will be used to send an “all-civilian” crew to space at the end of 2021.
Scheduled to launch in October, the mission will be commanded by billionaire Jared Isaacman. He is a trained pilot and the chief executive of Shift4 Payments, which sells credit card processing terminals and point-of-sale systems. Three people will ride alongside Isaacman and orbit aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule. The seats will go “to individuals from the general public" who will be announced in the coming weeks, SpaceX said in a statement.
Two of the seats will go to persons affiliated with St Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis. Specifically, one of those seats will go to a health care worker. “Actually a former cancer survivor, who was treated at St Jude and has come back and is an employee there”, Isaacman told The New York Times.
The third seat will be raffled off at random, with the hope of raising at least $200 million for St Jude. A donation is not required to enter for a chance twin the trip to space, but each dollar donated counts as 10 entries (up to 10,000 entries). Only US citizens and legal permanent residents who are 18 or older can enter the raffle. And you must be under 6 feet, 6 inches in height and weigh less than 250 pounds. You'll have to pass psychological and physical tests, as well.
Ideally, the three people chosen will “represent the mission pillars of leadership, hope, generosity, and prosperity", according to a press release.
The mission, named Inspiration4, will launch from SpaceX’s 39A launch site at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will use SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, and the crew will receive training from SpaceX on "orbital mechanics, operating in microgravity, zero gravity, and other forms of stress testing".
The four-person crew will spend up to five days in the Crew Dragon capsule as it orbits Earth every 90 minutes “along a customised flight path".
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How to enter for a chance to win a seat on Inspiration4
Go to the Inspiration 4 Donate website.
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Tags: #Good_News, #SpaceX, #Astronauts, #Space, #The_Brighter_Side_of_News
Joseph Shavit
Science News Writer, Editor-At-Large and Publisher
Joseph Shavit, based in Los Angeles, is a seasoned science journalist, editor and co-founder of The Brighter Side of News, where he transforms complex discoveries into clear, engaging stories for general readers. With experience at major media groups like Times Mirror and Tribune, he writes with both authority and curiosity. His work spans astronomy, physics, quantum mechanics, climate change, artificial intelligence, health, and medicine. Known for linking breakthroughs to real-world markets, he highlights how research transitions into products and industries that shape daily life.