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Inspiration4 is the first SpaceX all-civilian mission to orbit. Shift4 Payments founder and CEO Jared Isaacman funded the mission that will take him, cancer survivor and physician assistant Hayley Arceneaux, science communicator Dr. Sian Proctor, and St. Jude donor Chris Sembroski to space for an experience of a lifetime. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft (same vehicle from Crew-1) will transport these four individuals to Earth’s orbit for a days-long journey around the planet. Learn more at inspiration4.com.

Jared Isaacman announces Polaris Program: Record-breaking Dragon flight, commercial spacewalk, first crewed Starship flight

Today, a great deal of news about the future tourism flights of SpaceX came to light, led by none other than Billionaire Jared Isaacman. After commanding Inspiration4 last year, Isaacman will return as commander of a daring first of its kind Dragon mission, flying higher and staying longer than Inspiration4 did.

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Bezos, Branson, and Shatner are some of the final FAA Commercial Astronauts, whether you like it or not

This has been a big year for Space Tourism, from the sub-orbital hops of Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson to the multi-day orbital journey of the Inspiration4 crew. This raised a number of questions about what it means to be an astronaut. Many claimed that these space-tourists are nothing but passengers, and calling them astronauts dilutes the title provided to space heroes like Neil Armstrong, while others said that reaching space should be enough for the title. The FAA has now put this question to bed, issuing this year’s space tourists FAA Commercial Astronaut wings, but shutting down the program moving forward.

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SpaceX presents Dragon astronaut wings to crew of Inspiration4

It’s tradition for space travelers to receive wings when they return from their trip. Whether military, civilian, or private, if you fly to space, a shiny pair of wings will most likely await you upon your return from some organization. This now includes private SpaceX passengers, as the Inspiration4 crew were the first to receive new Dragon wings.

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Elon Musk donating $50 million to St. Jude, surpassing $200 million goal of Inspiration4 just after splashdown

The Inspiration4 crew successfully splashed down in the Atlantic following their nearly three days orbiting the Earth. In a great conclusion to the mission, Elon Musk shared that he would be donating $50 million dollars to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital—pushing the fundraising campaign past its $200 million goal.

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SpaceX launches Inspiration4 to orbit – ushering in new era of human spaceflight

inspiration4 launch engines

SpaceX launched their first non-NASA crewed mission, Inspiration4, to orbit using their Dragon spacecraft on Wednesday night. The crew members are not professional astronauts, but average citizens. They were not selected based on the strict requirements of previous astronauts, but instead for their ability to represent and inspire the world.

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[Update: Succesful launch and Dragon deployment] SpaceX Inspiration4 to become the first all-civilian mission to orbit

The long-awaited Inspiration4 mission will launch this week from the historic LC-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The flight, paid for by Shift4 founder and CEO Jared Issacman, will carry Issacman along with 3 other civilians.

Over the months we have come to know Issacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Dr. Sian Proctor, and Chris Sembroski. This week a new era of spaceflight begins as these four take to the sky inside a SpaceX Dragon capsule as the company’s first commercial astronaut mission.

Date: Wednesday, September 15th, 8:02 p.m. EDT

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