Polaris Dawn Mission Achieves Historic Milestones

The SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission concluded with a successful splashdown near Florida's Dry Tortugas early Sunday morning, bringing billionaire Jared Isaacman and his crew back to Earth after a historic five-day mission. The mission, which launched from Kennedy Space Center, saw the crew travel farther into space than any human has in decades, reaching a peak altitude of 875 miles above Earth. Highlights included the first-ever private spacewalk conducted by Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis. The crew, which also included pilot Scott Poteet and SpaceX engineer Anna Menon, completed research and tested SpaceX's new spacesuits and communication systems while in orbit. This mission marks a significant milestone in commercial spaceflight, with all crew members being non-professional astronauts.