London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Mar 06, 2026

Billionaire commissions three more SpaceX flights and plans first private spacewalk

Billionaire commissions three more SpaceX flights and plans first private spacewalk

Jared Isaacman plans to break new ground and fly farther into space than any non-lunar crewed spacecraft has done since 1966.

Jared Isaacman, the billionaire space tourist who led the first all-civilian mission to space, has commissioned three more trips with SpaceX - and plans to conduct a spacewalk on one of them.

The first of these flights could take place by the end of the year and will send the four-person crew further from the Earth than any other human spaceflight since the moon missions.

Both it and the second flight will use SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, but the third flight is expected to use Starship - which combined with the first stage, known as Super Heavy, will form the largest and most powerful launch vehicle ever assembled.

Mr Isaacman previously went into space with Sian Proctor, Hayley Arceneaux and Chris Sembroski


Speaking to the Washington Post, Mr Isaacman said he hoped the additional flights would "serve the bigger purpose of opening up space for everyone and making humankind a multiplanetary species and, ideally, have a benefit for the things we’re trying to accomplish back here on Earth".

Mr Isaacman and his fellow amateur astronauts orbited the planet every 90 minutes at a speed of more than 17,000mph and an altitude of up to 363 miles during their mission last year, higher than the International Space Station and Hubble Telescope.

The trip raised more than $125m (£92m) for St Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

He said he hopes to break new ground with the next trip by travelling to an altitude greater than any human has gone to since 1966, and has called the missions Polaris after the North Star.

The third mission will launch in SpaceX's new Starship spacecraft


The first launch will be called Polaris Dawn and is planned to feature the first all-civilian spacewalk, but SpaceX's Dragon capsule doesn't have an airlock.

As such the astronauts will be required to wear pressurised spacesuits and sit and wait while the cabin is depressurised before they open the hatch and float in space while tethered to the inside.

The crew for the first flight has already been selected. Alongside Mr Isaacman it includes Scott Potent, a former Air Force pilot who assisted with his previous mission, and two of SpaceX's engineers, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

Mrs Menon's husband Anil Menon has recently been selected by NASA to join its astronaut corps. She is likely to beat her husband into space.

SpaceX also plans to launch the first ever private lunar mission in 2023, taking Japanese entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa in a fly-by of the Moon during a week-long journey.

"This flight is an important step toward enabling access for people who dream of traveling to space," the company states.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Iceland Supermarket Drops Trademark Challenge Against Icelandic Government in Long-Running Naming Dispute
UK Defence Secretary Visits Cyprus Following Scrutiny of Britain’s Response to Drone Attacks
Questions Grow Over Britain’s Military Readiness as Response to Iran Conflict Draws Scrutiny
UK Offers Failed Asylum Seeker Families Up to Forty Thousand Pounds to Leave Voluntarily
Saharan Dust Could Bring ‘Blood Rain’ to Parts of the UK as Weather Systems Shift
UK Deploys Additional Typhoon Fighter Jets to Qatar and Helicopters to Cyprus Amid Rising Middle East Tensions
Experts Urge Britain to Accelerate Renewable Energy Push as Global Conflicts Drive Up Costs
British Public Shows Strong Reluctance to Join Wider War in Iran
First UK Evacuation Flight Departs Middle East After Lengthy Delay
United Kingdom Imposes New Visa Requirements on Travelers from St. Lucia and Nicaragua
Iran Conflict Strains U.S.–U.K. Alliance as Trump and Starmer Clash Over Military Strategy
UK Interest Rates Could Rise Above Four Percent Again if Energy Shock Continues, Think Tank Warns
Starmer Defends Britain’s Iran Strategy as Badenoch Urges Stronger Military Support
Labour MP Says She Saw No Sign Husband Broke Law After Arrest in China Espionage Investigation
UK Jobless Rate Overtakes Italy’s for First Time in Years as Labour Market Weakens
United Kingdom Suspends Student Visas for Four Countries in Unprecedented Immigration Move
Campaigners Warn UK Student Visa Ban Could Push Migrants Toward Dangerous Channel Crossings
First U.K. Charter Flight for Stranded Nationals Set to Depart Oman Amid Middle East Crisis
France and United Kingdom Deploy Warships to Eastern Mediterranean as Middle East Conflict Escalates
U.K. Arrests Three Men Including Lawmaker’s Partner in Suspected China Espionage Investigation
Trump Says UK–US ‘Special Relationship’ Is Diminished Amid Middle East Dispute
UK Economic Forecasts Face Fresh Strain from Middle East Conflict and Rising Energy Costs
UK Reaffirms Close US Ties After Trump’s Public Criticism
Reeves Stresses Stability and Fiscal Discipline in UK Budget Update as Growth Outlook Shifts
UK Deploys Royal Navy Destroyer HMS Dragon to Cyprus After Drone Strike on RAF Base
Green Party Surges Past Labour in New UK Poll as Traditional Party Support Crumbles
Majority of Britons Oppose U.S. Use of UK Military Bases in Iran Conflict
UK Intensifies Evacuation Efforts from Oman, Working with Airlines to Boost Flight Capacity
Trump Condemns UK and Spain in Unusually Sharp Rift Over Iran Military Action
Trump Repeats UK Claims That Diverge from Verified Facts Amid Diplomatic Strain
UK Arrests Prominent Figures Linked to Epstein Network as Questions Mount Over US Action
Trump Says UK ‘Took Far Too Long’ to Approve Use of Airbases for Iran Strikes
Scope of Britain’s Role in the Expanding Middle East Conflict Comes Under Scrutiny
Trump Says He Is ‘Very Disappointed’ in Starmer Over Iran Comments
U.S. Embassy in Riyadh Struck by Drones Amid Escalating Iran Conflict
Starmer Confronts Strategic Test After Drone Strike Near British Base in Cyprus
Rolls-Royce Chief Signals Openness to Germany Joining UK-Led Fighter Jet Programme
UK Stocks Slip as Escalating Iran Conflict Triggers Global Market Selloff
UK Overhauls Asylum System to Make Refugee Status Temporary
Starmer Warns of ‘Reckless’ Iranian Strikes Amid Escalating Regional Tensions
British Base in Cyprus Targeted as Drones Intercepted Amid Expanding Iran Conflict
Starmer Diverges from Trump on Iran Strategy, Rejects ‘Regime Change from the Skies’
U.S. and Israel Intensify Strikes on Iran as Conflict Expands to Lebanon and Gulf States
Violent Pro-Iranian Protesters Storm U.S. Consulate in Karachi
Missile Debris Sparks Fires at Dubai’s Jebel Ali Port Near Palm Jumeirah
Iran Strikes U.S. Fifth Fleet Headquarters in Bahrain Amid Wider Gulf Retaliation
When the State Replaces the Parent: How Gender Policy Is Redefining Custody and Coercion
Bill Clinton Denies Knowing Woman in Hot Tub Photo During Closed-Door Epstein Deposition
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton Testifies on Ties to Jeffrey Epstein Before Congressional Oversight Committee
Dyson Reaches Settlement in Landmark UK Forced Labour Case
×