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The four astronauts of SpaceX’s Fram2 mission, from the left, Eric Philips, Chun Wang, Rabea Rogge and Jannicke Mikkelsen. | Credit: SpaceX
SpaceX’s Fram2 Mission Set to Pioneer Polar Orbit
SpaceX is on the verge of launching its groundbreaking Fram2 mission, poised to send the first astronauts into polar orbit around Earth.
Fram2: A Voyage to Earth’s Extremes
Drawing inspiration from the Norwegian exploratory vessel Fram, renowned for its Arctic and Antarctic expeditions between 1893 and 1912, the Fram2 mission will transport a four-person crew into a 90-degree inclination orbit. This unique trajectory will enable the astronauts to traverse directly over Earth’s North and South Poles. This private mission marks a historic milestone, being the first crewed spaceflight to achieve such a steep orbital path, offering an unprecedented vantage point for studying our planet’s most isolated regions.
Meet the Fram2 Crew
SpaceX unveiled the Fram2 mission and its crew last summer, designating Maltese entrepreneur Chun Wang as the mission commander. The team includes vehicle commander Jannicke Mikkelsen of Norway, Australian Eric Philips as vehicle pilot, and German Rabea Rogge serving as mission specialist. All four individuals are spaceflight novices, embarking on their inaugural journey beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
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Launch Readiness and Spacecraft Details
A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to propel the Fram2 crew aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Resilience, with a target launch date no earlier than March 31, according to a recent online update from the company. This announcement followed the completion of crew training at SpaceX’s facilities in Hawthorne, California.
SpaceX further disclosed that Resilience has been transferred to Launch Complex-39A (LC-39A) hangar at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft will undergo integration with its Falcon 9 booster in preparation for the upcoming launch next Monday. Fram2 is designated as SpaceX’s seventh private astronaut mission, and will be the fourth flight for the Resilience spacecraft.
Image 1 of 4: Four humans pose on their knees in front of a crowd of people all raising their hands in excitement.
Image 2 of 4: A white conical space capsule stands atop a metal support against a black sky background.
Image 3 of 4: A white conical space capsule stands atop a metal trunk support inside a hangar.
Image 4 of 4: Four humans in white space suits post in front of a white wall with line drawings of a spaceship.
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Resilience’s Flight Heritage
The Resilience spacecraft has a notable track record, previously supporting crews on both Polaris Dawn missions and NASA’s Crew-1 mission to the International Space Station in 2020.
This mission continues SpaceX’s consistent cadence of privately funded crewed spaceflights, building upon two launches for Jared Isaacman’s Polaris Program, encompassing the Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn missions in September 2021 and September 2024 respectively, and three Axiom Space flights to the International Space Station (ISS) initiated in 2022.
Fram2 Mission Objectives
Similar to the Inspiration4 mission, Resilience will incorporate a cupola window affixed to its forward hatch, granting the crew a comprehensive 360-degree panoramic view of Earth from polar orbit. During Fram2’s planned three-to-five-day duration, Resilience will orbit at an altitude between 249 and 264 miles (425 and 450 kilometers). The astronauts aboard will conduct a series of scientific research experiments throughout the mission.
Research Focus Areas:
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Polar Region Observations: Studying Earth’s polar regions from a unique orbital perspective.
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Microgravity’s Impact on the Human Body: Investigating the effects of microgravity, including capturing the first X-ray image of a human in space.
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STEVE Phenomenon Study: Examining a phenomenon akin to STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement), characterized by green and purple ribbon-like auroras extending up to 300 miles (480 kilometers) above Earth.