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Crew-9 Astronauts Arrive at ISS Amid SpaceX Rocket Anomaly

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The SpaceX Crew-9 mission successfully docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday, despite SpaceX reporting an anomaly with the Falcon 9 rocket. NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov arrived safely, joining the current ISS crew after launching from Cape Canaveral the previous day. The capsule’s hatch was opened at 7:04 p.m. ET, marking the official arrival of the Crew-9 team.

The mission’s arrival at the ISS came after SpaceX disclosed that the second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket experienced an off-nominal deorbit burn, resulting in its disposal in the ocean, though it missed the targeted area. SpaceX has paused future Falcon 9 flights pending further investigation into the root cause of the issue.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, who had been on the ISS since June after issues with their Boeing Starliner spacecraft, will return to Earth with Crew-9 next year. Due to technical issues with the Starliner, NASA decided to extend their stay and use SpaceX’s Crew Dragon for their return. The Starliner returned to Earth unmanned in September following complications with helium leaks and thruster malfunctions.

Williams and Wilmore had originally planned for a short stay on the ISS, but NASA adjusted its plans, extending their mission. They will now fulfill duties alongside the Crew-9 team until their scheduled return in early 2024. NASA cited vehicle availability and ISS operational needs as key reasons for keeping the astronauts in space for a full crew rotation.

The full ISS crew now consists of NASA’s Don Pettit, Russian cosmonauts Aleksey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Williams, Wilmore, Hague, and Gorbunov. NASA and Russia’s Roscosmos have continued their collaborative seat-swapping program, which brought Pettit and Gorbunov to the station on spacecraft from each other’s countries.

SpaceX’s next mission, Crew-10, is slated for February 2024 and will involve a newly developed Crew Dragon capsule. Until then, Williams and Wilmore will remain in space, having adapted to the extended mission duration.

 

SEC to Seek Sanctions Against Elon Musk in Twitter Takeover Probe

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced its intent to seek sanctions against Elon Musk after he failed to appear for a court-ordered testimony regarding his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter. According to a filing in a San Francisco federal court, Musk notified the SEC just three hours before his scheduled September 10 testimony that he would not attend.

The SEC claims Musk’s absence is part of a broader pattern of “gamesmanship” and delay tactics, and they will be filing a motion to hold him in civil contempt. Musk, who was at Cape Canaveral overseeing SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission on that day, argued through his lawyer, Alex Spiro, that his absence was an “emergency” and attending the launch was critical to astronaut safety.

The SEC’s investigation centers on whether Musk violated securities laws in early 2022 when he began accumulating Twitter stock. Shareholders and regulators have criticized Musk for delaying the disclosure of his ownership stake, which eventually reached 9.2%, beyond the 5% threshold that mandates public disclosure. Musk’s defense claims the delay was an oversight and that it was “a mistake” rather than intentional wrongdoing.

This latest conflict follows a longstanding feud between Musk and the SEC, dating back to 2018 when the regulator sued him over misleading tweets about taking Tesla private. Musk settled that lawsuit by paying a $20 million fine and stepping down as Tesla’s chairman.

Musk’s testimony has been rescheduled for October 3, but the SEC remains skeptical about his compliance. The regulator is pushing for clear consequences to ensure Musk does not continue to evade their investigation.

 

Four Civilians on SpaceX Mission Complete Historic First Commercial Spacewalk

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A crew of four civilians aboard SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission achieved a groundbreaking milestone by completing the first-ever commercial spacewalk. At 6:12 a.m. ET, the crew unlocked the hatch of their Crew Dragon capsule and exposed themselves to the vacuum of space for the historic event, also known as extravehicular activity (EVA). This event marks a significant step forward in the realm of private space exploration, as it’s the first time non-government astronauts have conducted a spacewalk.

The five-day mission, which had already set records by traveling farther into space than any human has since NASA’s Apollo program, saw the Crew Dragon vehicle depressurized, exposing the entire crew to space. The team included Shift4 Payments CEO Jared Isaacman, who funded the Polaris Dawn mission, former US Air Force pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet, and SpaceX engineers Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis. They had been training for this moment since their launch at 5:23 a.m. ET on Tuesday.

Before exiting the spacecraft, the crew underwent a “pre-breathe” process to purge their blood of nitrogen, preventing potentially fatal gas bubbles from forming in their bodies. Isaacman was the first to leave the capsule, stepping onto a mobility aid, dubbed “skywalker,” to venture into the vastness of space. “Back at home we all have a lot of work to do, but from here — looks like a perfect world,” Isaacman commented as he took in the breathtaking views.

Historic EVA and Spacesuit Testing

Although the spacewalk was brief, with Isaacman and Gillis spending a combined 20 minutes outside the spacecraft, it was an essential demonstration of SpaceX’s newly designed EVA suits. These suits, developed in just two and a half years, are designed to be more flexible and functional than traditional spacesuits, which are often bulky and expensive. SpaceX’s goal is to create spacesuits that are mass-produced and affordable for the future of space travel, which could one day involve large numbers of people living in space.

The new EVA suits do not include a Primary Life Support System (PLSS) like those used by astronauts on the International Space Station. Instead, life support is provided by long hoses connected to the Crew Dragon capsule. This technology could represent a step toward making space exploration more accessible and cost-effective. SpaceX founder Elon Musk has previously discussed the importance of affordable space suits for large-scale space settlement, and this mission plays a key role in that vision.

Isaacman and Gillis’s spacewalk also tested the mobility of the new suits, with Gillis noting the experience of “wiggling around” to assess their flexibility in the weightlessness of space. While the other crew members remained inside the capsule, they still enjoyed stunning views of Earth from their windows, witnessing sunrises and sunsets every 106 minutes.

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Scientific Research and Future Space Exploration

In addition to the historic spacewalk, the Polaris Dawn crew is conducting nearly 40 scientific experiments during their time in orbit. These studies focus on various challenges faced by humans in space, including space adaptation syndrome, which affects about half of all astronauts. The crew will also use special contact lenses equipped with pressure sensors to study how the eyeballs respond to pressure changes in microgravity, a project affectionately known as “the cyborg experiment.”

The crew’s mission is expected to last five or six days, with their return to Earth potentially occurring early Sunday morning. They have been communicating with Earth via SpaceX’s Starlink satellite system, sharing breathtaking images of their journey and expressing gratitude for the support they’ve received.

The Future of Commercial Space Travel

This mission represents a significant leap forward for the commercial space industry. As NASA Administrator Bill Nelson remarked after the spacewalk, “Today’s success represents a giant leap forward for the commercial space industry and NASA’s long-term goal to build a vibrant U.S. space economy.”

The mission’s success highlights the growing role of private companies like SpaceX in pushing the boundaries of human space exploration, paving the way for future missions that may involve civilians traveling even deeper into space.