SpaceX Assisted Spacewalking- A New Realm For Billionaires To Try

SpaceX assisted spacewalking adventure for a tech billionaire, Jared Isaacman on Thursday for his first-ever spacewalk. This is a new domain that rich billionaires want to try now after space tourism.

Spacewalking is a brand-new domain that has become a thrill for the rich but demands extensive training. SpaceX stepped in to provide a space capsule to Isaacman two days after he reached Florida to have an experience of his lifetime.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk bought a series of rocket rides for the billionaire and helped in the development of new spacesuits for him. Up until now, only twelve countries have had a commercial business participate in spacewalks, SpaceX being the first.

How SpaceX assisted spacewalking become unique

The spacewalk attempt is currently not planned on a regular basis at the International Space Station. Astronauts, however, do float in space for repairing the spacecraft. When Isaacman and SpaceX engineer, Sarah Gills launched into space, they were approximately 700 kilometres above Earth. They barely came out of the space machine to enjoy the walk but it was not before their orbit was twice that high.

A team of four crew mates were onboard. Isaacman and Gills navigated outside the craft for 15-20 minutes while the remaining two constantly monitored their actions and timings from inside the cabin.

Despite SpaceX spacesuits being designed based on industry standards, they need to be tested for perfection on the factory floor. They are exposed to a vacuum of space for a reason. The Dragon capsule does not have an airlock which is quite unlike the other large space machines.

It was predicted that for Isaacman, throwing away the cabin atmosphere and restoring it to the normal threshold would be the riskiest part of the entire process.

Isaacman said that one has to be careful enough to avoid anything that could possibly go wrong. He told that they were just out there to gather data and needed to complete it within the given time.

Their five-day trip was thoroughly planned for which SpaceX put considerable preparation and testing for the capsule and space suits. The training was ongoing for the past two years, former NASA manager, SpaceX’s Bill Gerstenmaier revealed the details.

Spacewalking: A new domain for the rich to explore

Spacewalking has become a niche of its own, which is ‘elite’. Despite demanding comprehensive training, it is one of the most dangerous flights right after a space rocket launch and entry into space.

A retired NASA astronaut, Chris Cassidy, said, “Spacewalks are a whole different ballgame than just strapping into a rocket and riding it, getting some zero-g time, and coming back”.

Cassidy knew the circumstances that became a matter of life and death in space when his partner, an Italian astronaut, Luca Parmitano almost drowned in 2013 while working outside the spacecraft. His partner’s helmet was filled with water that leaked from his cooling garment. There was hardly any time left for him to make it back to the spacecraft. Cassidy remembered that after 30 minutes, “the answer might be different”.

Definitely not free from risks

For the current SpaceX assisted spacewalking, Cassidy is worried about a “slippery slope”. It is a slope that the billionaire might try to jump while spacewalking with minimal training. It would be fatal.

Risk and disaster analyst Ilan Kelman of University College London stated that he believes there would be multiple fatalities if amateurs attempt spacewalking since it is “appropriate and inevitable”.

Kelman was of the view that much could be done to reduce risk for people who would regularly come in the future to enjoy the experience. “We must be entirely honest with anyone participating, especially the low chance of rescue when something major goes wrong”.