Desk
Share
A Bitcoin investor who paid for a SpaceX flight for himself and three polar explorers onboard the first rocket to carry passengers over the North and South Poles blasted off on Monday night around 8 PM. Chun Wang, a Chinese-born entrepreneur, took off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida with the southernmost destination in mind. As the falcon rocket took off, SpaceX tourists were sent on a path over the Atlantic ocean never before traveled in 64 years of space exploration, South of the equator.
Wang did not disclose the price for the trip, which included 3.5 days of living the life of a polar adventurer. Judging by the estimate though, the remaining legs of the trip would be much more costly, as the trip from Florida to the South Pole was supposed to take less than half an hour. Based on their starting point, at roughly 270 miles, the fully equipped capsule would have to be at a 270 mile altitude to be able to travel above “around the globe,” which would include a full pole to pole flight, taking about an hour and a half.
This trip is all about “Overcoming challenges, enhancing understanding,” Wang said. In addition to a space sightseeing tour of Earth’s polar regions planned, Wang also hopes to complete the process of viewing the poles after already visiting them. The rest of his travel group consisted of Australian polar guide Eric Philips, German robotics researcher Rabea Rogge, and Norwegian filmmaker Jannicke Mikkelsen.
Mikkelsen became the first Norwegian set to fly to space, had already flown over the poles albeit at a lower altitude. She was a part of the record year of 2019 that flew around the world via the poles in a Gulfstream for the purpose of celebrating the 50 year anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s walk on the moon.
The crew has prepared two dozen experiments which includes the milestone of taking human X rays in space, and unlike the usual, more specialized cameras have been brought to capture the journey that was dubbed Fram2, after the Norwegian polar research vessel from the last century.
Mikkelsen is set to become the first person to fly over the Arctic in space and break the previous record of 65 degree latitude set by Valentina Tereshkovo, the first woman in space. The mark was set in 1963 and from then space travelers were not permitted to cross over into the Arctic circle. All the other groundbreaking Soviet cosmonauts were able to cross over the Canadian border and the US during the 90’s.
Satellites for climate, Earth mapping and spying find a polar orbit most optimal as it allows for rotation around the earth from pole to pole making them easier to see from the spacecraft.
Scholars believe that submarines will one day be able to dive under the polar ice caps. While returning on Norway’s polar ship, Wang’s team prepared videos which they plan on posting on social media once the submarine's capabilities improve. Geir Klover, director of the Fram Museum in Oslo, Norway, hopes the trip will raise gel more awareness regarding the melting polar chips and climate change. The ship’s crew where Amundsen's deck signed was previously on display.
Wang pitched the idea of a polar flight to SpaceX in 2023 two years after U.S. tech entrepreneurs Isaacman hired one of Musk's flights. He now aims to be head of NASA.
Dontchev told us in an SpaceX briefing that they aim to develop even further a how-to guide for "normal people.” Such people will not have apothemali and they will calm into a capsule and will be clear about pupping mecha.
Wang and his team described the polar fliht as wild camping, a capsule with massive windows which let the passengers enjoy all the icicles from the top.
"Honestly, I'm happy to see it becoming more ordinary," Wang said over X last week.
According to Wang, he’s been eagerly counting since his first flight in 2002, traveling by airplanes, helicopters, and even hot air balloons during his journey to visit every country in the world. He has already visited more than half of them. He scheduled it in a way that ensured he would reach his 1000th flight on takeoff.
Read More: Santo Domingo Nightclub Roof Collapse Kills 98, Injures Over 150
