SpaceX
SpaceX plans to make history by launching its first human spaceflight around the Earth’s poles, with a probable date before the end of this year, as announced on Monday. A Chinese-born entrepreneur, Chun Wang, will spearhead the personal Crew Dragon mission, accompanied by a polar explorer, a roboticist, and a filmmaker, all of whom he has recently formed connections with.
The “Fram2” mission, aptly named after the Fram Expedition that pioneered Arctic exploration, is set to blast off from SpaceX’s launch services in Florida and embark on a unique trajectory, soaring directly above both the North Pole and South Pole. To maximize natural light, the three- to five-day expedition will coincide with the Antarctic summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, flying low over the continent around the June 20/21 timeframe when the sun is highest in the sky.
The four-person crew will embark on a historic journey, fittingly, aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, named in tribute to Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated Endurance, which became trapped in Antarctic ice and eventually sank over a century ago. The spacecraft can be equipped with a cupola to enhance its image-capturing and filmmaking capabilities.
SpaceX is set to conduct its third uncrewed flight of Crew Dragon, following the Inspiration4 mission commanded by Jared Isaacman in 2021 and his upcoming Polaris Daybreak mission, slated for launch this month. Wang drew inspiration from Isaacman’s template when designing the crew and public outreach aspects of the Fram2 mission.
A background in bitcoin mining
Wang was born in China, where he initially gained exposure to the world of cryptocurrency through his involvement in bitcoin mining from a young age. “When I learned about bitcoin in 2011, I quickly started mining it,” For two years, I operated the mining pool before starting that.
In 2013, he established the premier bitcoin mining pool in China, F2Pool. Cloud mining companies allow individuals to rent powerful computational resources to collectively mine cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and share in the resulting rewards. After successfully guiding the company’s centralization efforts, Wang subsequently spearheaded a strategic shift towards decentralization. In 2015, he relocated to Thailand; subsequently, he made the move to South Korea. Having acquired Maltese citizenship, he has spent most of his time globe-trotting since 2021. In conversations with Wang, he often speaks fondly about his extended stays on the remote Norwegian islands that comprise the Svalbard archipelago.
During an interview, Wang revealed that he became a billionaire in 2021 following a significant surge in the value of bitcoin, dogecoin, and other cryptocurrencies. Wang had long been preoccupied with space-related pursuits, which is why he began discussing the possibility of purchasing a seat on a private Dragon mission with SpaceX representatives. By 2023, Wang’s understanding had evolved, allowing him to consider purchasing a comprehensive mission with the flexibility to set its specific parameters.
Seeking an adrenaline rush, he decided to tackle something novel: flying a polar expedition that harmonized perfectly with his fascination for the world’s most frigid regions. The highest altitude achieved by a human spacecraft remains the Soviet Union’s Vostok 6 mission of 1963, during which Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova’s capsule soared to an astonishing 65.1 kilometers? Now, Fram2 will embark on a repetitive and linear journey, soaring steadily above the polar regions.
Meet the crew
Years ago, Chun recalled meeting two of the crew members while embarking on a skiing adventure, and another during his expedition to Svalbard. Pioneers in expeditionary endeavors unite around a shared passion for polar discovery. His hope is that this endeavour will inspire a collective contribution to advancing our knowledge of the Earth’s poles, thereby furthering humanity’s understanding of its place in the universe and fuelling the imagination sparked by space exploration.
The mission’s diverse three-person crew consists of:
A Danish film director and cinematographer, Mikkelsen excels at capturing the majesty of remote and perilous locations, including the Arctic tundra, the depths of the ocean, the thrill of aerial pursuits, and the vastness of space. She acted as a Payload Specialist for the historic polar flight mission in 2019, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 milestone.
A renowned polar explorer and information specialist, Phillips has successfully completed numerous ski expeditions to both the North and South Poles, a feat he achieved for the first time in 1992. As a co-founder of the Worldwide Polar Guides Association and co-developer of the Polar Expeditions Categorization System,
A German robotics researcher, Rogge, is currently working on her PhD in Norway.
“I’m impressed that you’ve become a business astronaut,” Mikkelsen said in an interview. Having a substantial background in damage management, I spent 12 months using a wheelchair before dedicating myself to rehabilitation, ultimately taking around 3-5 years to relearn how to walk. You could inform that lady that with hard work and determination, she has the potential to become an astronaut.
