--- title: "SpaceX Preparing to Launch Billionaire Adventurer for First Ever Private Spacewalk" description: "SpaceX is slated to launch a billionaire benefactor into orbit for the world's first private spacewalk in the next few weeks." date: "2024-07-29" modified: "2024-07-29" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/spacex-prepares-private-spacewalk" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" tags: - "jared isaacman" - "space tourists" - "SpaceX" - "the digest" --- # SpaceX Preparing to Launch Billionaire Adventurer for First Ever Private Spacewalk ![SpaceX is slated to launch a billionaire benefactor into orbit for the world's first private spacewalk in the next few weeks.]() *\Image: Polaris Dawn\* ## Ready Or Not SpaceX is slated to launch a billionaire benefactor into orbit for the world's first private spacewalk in the next few weeks — that is, if the mission doesn't get postponed yet again. As [*Space.com* reports,]() the Elon Musk-owned company [admitted in a press briefing]() over the weekend that its Polaris Dawn mission will now launch no earlier than August 19 following reschedulings that pushed it back to July 31. The mission, which will take [fintech billionaire Jared Isaacman]() aboard a Falcon 9 rocket to become the first [space tourist to ever attempt a spacewalk](), was postponed in the wake of another of the company's rockets [exploding earlier in July]() — though the official reasoning behind the slip seems to be traffic-related. "There's a lot going on on \[the International Space Station\] right now," explained Sarah Walker, the director of SpaceX's Dragon mission management, during the presser. "We opted to fly the Crew-9 mission as our next \[astronaut\] mission and are ready to fly Polaris Dawn in late summer, as soon as we fulfill those obligations." She later clarified that "late summer" meant at some point in August, *Space.com* notes. ## Flying Solo-ish This will be neither the first time [Isaacman has flown up on a SpaceX rocket]() — he previously took an [incredibly expensive orbital vacation]() in 2021 — nor the first time this specific mission has slipped launch dates. As *Space.com* explains, Polaris Dawn was originally slated for late 2022, but it's been pushed back repeatedly. Given the official cause of the slip, it's unclear whether this most recent postponement is due to the Falcon 9 explosion or not. When the Polaris Dawn mission — which is [supposed to be the first of three]() additional trips after his first one — is finally launched, it won't link up with the ISS but will instead see Isaacman and his comrades fly farther into Earth's orbit than any other Dragon mission to date. Postponements aside, it's nevertheless going to be incredible to watch Isaacman and the crew flying up with him to g[hostride the whip]() — as he becomes the first space tourist ever to do so. *Updated to better describe the Falcon 9 failure.* **More on space tourism:** [*Billionaire Promised Crew Free Flights Around Moon, Then Dashed Their Dreams*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()