The world’s first-ever all-civilian crew that will be sent to space has started training for the flight scheduled for September. The mission will be launched aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
Shift4 Payments CEO Jared Isaacman, who is also the commander for the Inspiration4 mission, has tweeted a few images showing the crew fully equipped in their spacesuits
“Another week of training wrapped up at SpaceX for the Inspiration4 crew,” the caption read on Isaacman’s tweet.
Raising fund through space mission
The Inspiration4 mission became official in February 2021 after Isaacman secured the exclusive flight in a deal with SpaceX. The mission will aim to highlight the work of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, and collect funds for it.
The mission commander himself will donate $100 million to the hospital and is hoping to raise funds from others as well. He will be accompanied by Hayley Arceneaux, a 29-year-old physician assistant. She will become the first bone cancer survivor to go to space, the first to travel to orbit with a prosthetic body part, and the youngest person from America to orbit our planet.
The other two members of this three-day trip are Dr. Sian Proctor, a trained pilot who got a seat on the mission through an online business competition. Another member is Christopher Sembroski, a U.S. Air Force veteran who is currently employed by Lockheed Martin.
Crew undergoing heavy training
The training for the crew has already begun at The National Aerospace Training and Research Center in Pennsylvania. They are performing several activities that will help them built good teamwork. Earlier this year, SpaceX showed off a new Crew Dragon spacecraft design that is built in a way that Inspiration4 crew members will get stunning views of Earth and the cosmos.
If the mission goes according to plan, it will be a huge leap in space tourism and the company’s plan to launch a commercial space tourism service. Rivals such as Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic are also planning to offer similar services. Blue Origin is planning a mission aboard its New Shepard spacecraft and Jeff Bezos will also be joining the crew on the journey.
