Friday, 25 April 2025
Friday, 25 April 2025
Crypto investor Chun Wang is having a gala time in space right now. And we are lucky to run into what's happening up there.
A video taken from the Dragon capsule -- currently on SpaceX's Fram2 mission -- shows breathtaking views of the planet's icy polar caps. It's a view from space as the capsule orbits the Earth at a 90-degree inclination over the north and south poles.
Elon Musk reposted the video on X, saying, "The first astronauts to orbit the poles."
On March 31, Musk's SpaceX launched a crew of four private astronauts led by Wang on a mission to orbit Earth from pole to pole with a team of first-time astronauts, a novel trajectory in which no humans have travelled before.
Wang was appointed head of the mission, along with vehicle commander Jannicke Mikkelsen from Norway, pilot Rabea Rogge from Germany, and medical officer Eric Phillips from Australia.
The spacecraft is currently flying at an altitude of approximately 425-450 kilometers, providing unparalleled views of Earth's polar ice sheets and atmospheric phenomena. The flight path demands quite more fuel compared to traditional orbits closer to the equator.
It is expected to last between three and five days, during which the crew will conduct 22 scientific experiments, such as growing mushrooms in space for the first time and performing human body X-rays in orbit—both groundbreaking endeavors.
After completing their mission, the spacecraft will perform a deorbit burn, marking a first for SpaceX's crewed missions, and make a splashdown on the Pacific Ocean.
The mission's flight program is designed for 86 hours, with a scheduled return to Earth on April 4.
Fram2 is the 16th crewed mission overall using the reusable Crew Dragon, a gumdrop-shaped spacecraft that SpaceX developed with NASA funding to provide the U.S. space agency a ride for its astronauts to and from the International Space Station.
The mission takes its name from the famous Norwegian ship “Fram,” which played a key role in early 20th-century polar exploration, helping adventurers reach Earth’s Arctic and Antarctic regions.
