Polaris Dawn

Name: SpaceX Polaris Dawn Falcon 9 rocket launch
Start: 2024-09-10T09:23:00+00:00
End: 2024-09-10T11:09:00+00:00
Location: Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Falcon 9 Block 5

SpaceX

Launch Status

Success

Tue • Sep 10th, 2024
9:23 AM UTC

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Rocket Launch Videos

Weather Forecast During Launch

According to weather officials, there's a 80% chance of favorable weather conditions at the time of the launch. Officials are monitoring weather conditions with concerns related to Thick Cloud Layers Rule, Cumulus Cloud Rule, Flight Through Precipitation. The forecast calls for a temperature of 78°F, broken clouds, 80% cloud cover and a wind speed of 4mph.

Trajectory

View comprehensive details including the rocket's trajectory, velocity, altitude, thrust, and more at FlightClub.io.

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Crew

Jared Isaacman

Birthday: 02/11/1983
Role: Commander
Nationality: United States of America
First Flight: 09/16/2021
Last Flight: 09/10/2024

Jared Isaacman is an American businessman and pilot. He is the co-founder and CEO of Harbortouch, a payment processor and man...

Scott Poteet

Birthday: 01/01/1970
Role: Pilot
Nationality: United States of America
First Flight: 09/10/2024
Last Flight: 09/10/2024

Scott “Kidd” Poteet is a retired United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel who served 20 years in various roles that inc...

Anna Menon

Role: Mission Specialist
Nationality: United States of America
First Flight: 09/10/2024
Last Flight: 09/10/2024

Anna Menon is a Lead Space Operations Engineer at SpaceX, where she manages the development of crew operations and serves in ...

Sarah Gillis

Birthday: 01/01/1990
Role: Mission Specialist
Nationality: United States of America
First Flight: 09/10/2024
Last Flight: 09/10/2024

Sarah Gillis is a Lead Space Operations Engineer at SpaceX, responsible for overseeing the company’s astronaut training pro...

Rocket Launch Timeline

Enhance your rocket launch experience with a detailed timeline! From pre-launch preparations to post-launch milestones, a well-structured schedule ensures every step—payload prep, safety checks, and liftoff—runs smoothly. Stay informed and follow the action with precision.

View the launch timeline

T- 00 : 45 : 00	GO for Prop Load Launch director verifies go for propellant load
T- 00 : 42 : 00	Crew Access Arm Retract Retraction of the crew access arm from the rocket
T- 00 : 39 : 00	Dragon LES Arm Dragon's launch escape system is armed
T- 00 : 35 : 00	Stage 1 LOX Load Start of liquid oxygen loading in the first stage
T- 00 : 35 : 00	Prop Load Start of propelland loading
T- 00 : 16 : 00	Stage 2 LOX Load Start of liquid oxygen loading in the second stage
T- 00 : 07 : 00	Engine Chill Start of engine chilling
T- 00 : 05 : 00	Dragon Internal Power Dragon transitions to internal power
T- 00 : 01 : 00	Tank Press Fuel tanks are pressurized to flight levels
T- 00 : 01 : 00	Startup The onboard computer takes control over the countdown and runs last checks
T- 00 : 00 : 45	GO for Launch Launch director verifies go for launch
T- 00 : 00 : 03	Ignition Start of the engine ignition sequence
T+ 00 : 00 : 00	Liftoff First upwards movement of the rocket
T+ 00 : 00 : 58	Max-Q Maximum dynamic pressure
T+ 00 : 02 : 38	MECO Cut-off of the main engine
T+ 00 : 02 : 42	Stage 2 Separation Separation of the second stage from the first
T+ 00 : 02 : 51	SES-1 First start of the second engine
T+ 00 : 07 : 39	Entry Burn Startup Start of the atmospheric entry burn
T+ 00 : 08 : 01	Entry Burn Shutdown End of the atmospheric entry burn
T+ 00 : 08 : 59	SECO-1 First cut-off of the second engine
T+ 00 : 09 : 11	Stage 1 Landing Burn Start of the first stage landing burn
T+ 00 : 09 : 35	Stage 1 Landing Landing of the first stage
T+ 00 : 12 : 16	Dragon Separation Dragon separates from the second stage
T+ 00 : 12 : 58	Dragon Nosecode Open Start of the opening sequence of Dragon's nosecone

Mission

Polaris Dawn

Type: Human Exploration
Orbit: Low Earth Orbit
Launch Cost: $52,000,000

First mission of the privately funded Polaris program. The goal of this mission, lasting up to five days in orbit, is to fly higher than previous Dragon missions, perform the first-ever commercial EVA with SpaceX-designed spacesuits, orbit through portions of the Van Allen radiation belt, conduct medical research, and test laser-based Starlink communications in space.

Location

Launch Complex 39A

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Find the best place to watch the launch from Florida

Launch Complex 39A has witnessed the launch of 199 rockets, including 198 orbital launch attempts. While Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA, has been the site for 257 rocket launches.

The John F. Kennedy Space Center, located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of NASA's ten field centers. Since 1968, KSC has been NASA's primary launch center of American spaceflight, research, and technology. Launch operations for the Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle programs were carried out from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 and managed by KSC. Located on the east coast of Florida, KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).

Rocket

SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. The Block 5 variant is the fifth major interval aimed at improving upon the ability for rapid reusability.

Learn more about the Falcon 9 Block 5

Landing

Core B1083

The Falcon 9 first stage B1083 has landed on ASDS JRTI after its 4th flight. Booster B1083 last launched 01/21/2025 and has seen 8 successful launches and landings. Booster first flown during the Crew-8 mission.

Just Read the Instructions - JRTI

Third (Marmac 303) ASDS barge, Just Read the Instructions (JRTI) is currently used to recover Falcon 9 and Heavy boosters in the Altantic Ocean.

Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship - ASDS

An autonomous spaceport drone ship (ASDS) is an ocean-going vessel derived from a deck barge, outfitted with station-keeping engines and a large landing platform. Construction of such ships was commissioned by aerospace company SpaceX to allow for recovery of rocket first-stages at sea for high-velocity missions which do not carry enough fuel to return to the launch site after lofting spacecraft onto an orbital trajectory.

Agency

SpaceX

Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by entrepreneur Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonization of Mars. SpaceX operates from many pads, on the East Coast of the US they operate from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and historic LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. They also operate from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, usually for polar launches. Another launch site is being developed at Boca Chica, Texas.