SpaceX's Polaris Dawn crew returned to Earth today, September 15. The Dragon spacecraft landed on Florida's Dry Tortugas Coast at 1:06 p.m. The speed of the spacecraft when entering the Earth's atmosphere was 27,000 km per hour. Collisions with air created friction and temperatures reached 1,900 degrees Celsius. The Polaris Dawn mission was launched on September 10 aboard Elon Musk's Falcon 9 rocket. This 5-day mission carried 4 astronauts into orbit (1,408.1 km) which had not been done by an astronaut in over 50 years.
The hardest part of the mission was the return
The most difficult part of any space mission is the return to Earth. To reach home safely, the Crew Dragon capsule began a “de-orbit burn”. The spacecraft entered Earth's atmosphere at a speed of about 27,000 kilometers per hour. Collisions with air created friction and temperatures reached 1,900 degrees Celsius. A 4-meter-wide heatshield beneath the Dragon spacecraft protects the astronauts from these temperatures. As the spacecraft descended, its speed slowed.
Parachutes were opened to further slow it down and it landed in water. A rescue team was already there on a special boat. Before evacuating the astronauts from the capsule, the rescue team performed final safety checks, then carried them from the water to land.
Two astronauts spacewalked over 700 km
The mission was intended to be the first private extravehicular activity (spacewalk). Apart from this, 36 researches and experiments related to human health were also carried out in this mission. On September 12, two astronauts performed a spacewalk about 700 kilometers above Earth. Mission Commander Jared Isakman and Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis went out for a spacewalk for about 10 minutes. After the spacewalk, the spacecraft's hatch was closed. The speed of the spacecraft during the spacewalk was 25,000 km per hour.
Falcon-9 is the world's first orbital class reusable rocket
The Falcon 9 is a reusable two-stage rocket designed by SpaceX to carry astronauts and payloads to and from Earth orbit. Dragon spacecraft is capable of carrying 7 astronauts into space. It is the only private spacecraft that carries humans to the space station. Dragon's first test flight took place in 2010.
Polaris Dawn is the first of three planned missions
Polaris Dawn is the first of three planned missions in the Polaris program. Jared Isackman is funding it. If all goes according to plan, the third Polaris flight will be the starship's first crewed mission. Starship is the world's most powerful rocket under test.
