SpaceX Delays Crewed “Polaris Dawn” Mission Due to Helium Leak

On Tuesday, August 27, 2024, SpaceX announced the postponement of the crewed “Polaris Dawn” mission, which includes four crew members, by at least one day. This decision was made after a helium gas leak was detected in ground equipment at the Kennedy Space Center, just hours before the scheduled launch of the “Crew Dragon” spacecraft.

The mission was initially planned to last five days, with a major highlight being the first commercial spacewalk at an altitude of 700 kilometers above Earth. The crew was set to perform a 20-minute spacewalk.

In a statement published on the platform “X” (formerly Twitter), SpaceX stated that they are now targeting a launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket at 3:38 AM local time (07:38 GMT) on Wednesday. The company confirmed that both the Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon spacecraft are in good condition and that the crew is ready for their multi-day mission in low Earth orbit.

It is worth noting that spacewalks have so far been limited to astronauts from government missions. The United States conducted its first spacewalk in 1965 as part of the Gemini mission.

Sources:

Al Ar