SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 - Inspiration4 - Launching September 15/16, 2021
Screenshot from SpaceX Webcast of the launch of Inspiration4
Mission Rundown: SpaceX Falcon 9 B5 - Inspiration4
Written: August 31, 2022
We’re Star Trekking on a white Dragon
SpaceX successfully launched the first fully private orbital mission ever: Inspiration4. The four astronauts successfully lifted off on Wednesday, September 15 at 20:02:56 EDT from LC 39A, at the historic Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on B1062-3.
The Crew Dragon C207-2, nicknamed “Resilience”, was the astronauts’ home for three days, where they orbited in a roughly 575 km circular orbit. The highest apogee during the mission was 590 km, marking the highest orbit a crewed mission since the STS-103 mission in 1999.
During this time, the crew performed a number of scientific experiments, gazed at the Earth through the cupola, and had some personal time which included drawing, playing the Ukulele, and talking to children at St. Jude’s.
C207-2 successfully did a splashdown on September 18, 2021 at 19:06 EDT. The recovery vessel GO Searcher recovered Dragon from the Atlantic ocean. In a SpaceX personal record, the crew egressed C207-2 roughly 45 minutes after splashdown.
Adding to the success of the mission, the Inspiration4 mission exceeded its goal of raising $200 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: commander Isaacman personally donated $100 million, Elon Musk personally donated $50 million, and an additional $60 million was raised by the community.
Liftoff, on a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, occurred right on time at 20:02:56 EDT / 00:02:56 UTC on Wednesday, September 15/16, 2021.
The Inspiration4 mission will see C207-2 Resilience carry four civilian astronauts lead by Mission Commander Jared Isaacman, Mission Pilot Dr. Sian Proctor, Chief Medical Officer Hayley Arceneaux and Mission Specialist Christopher Sembroski in a Low Earth Orbit and demonstrate an alternative use of the crewed Dragon 2 space capsule.
It is the fourth crewed mission overall for SpaceX and its Crew Dragon vehicle following its Demo-2 flight last year and with the Crew-2 mission which remains in orbit.
Like the Space Shuttle before it, Crew Dragon is reusable – the first reusable human capsule launch and entry system in the world. The Inspiration4 mission marks the second flight to orbit for Resilience, spacecraft C207-2.
Since its inaugural flight, Dragon 2 has flown 10 times — 4 crewed and 6 uncrewed.
Inspiration4 marked the third flight for booster B1062-3, which previously launched a mission last June. This was the first time a flight-proven booster was used to launch a Crew Dragon mission.
Following the stage separation from 2nd stage and Resilience, the booster B1062-3 will conduct an atmosphere re-entry burn and a landing burn and will softly touch down on ‘Just Read The Instructions’ positioned 535 km downrange on the Atlantic Ocean.
After the final static fire test at 02:30 EDT on September 13, 2021 on Pad 39A and final check outs, the Falcon 9 rocket B1062-3 will be made ready for launch.
The Inspiration4 science mission
The Inspiration4 astronauts were tasked with conducting research during their three day mission. As the four astronauts will be the highest a human has been since 1999, they will be exposed to more radiation than astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS) usually are exposed to.
The astronauts collected research-grade ECG activity, movement, sleep, heart rate and rhythm, blood oxygen saturation, cabin noise, and light intensity data. Teams also gathered data on the molecular processes in the body, and how they change throughout the spaceflight.
Additionally, the four astronauts will be monitored for changes in behavioral and cognitive performance throughout and after the mission. Researchers used the public Cognition app to track any changes.
The crew members also used the Butterfly IQ+ Ultrasound device to attempt to acquire clinical grade images without the guidance of professionally trained ground support members. Teams hoped to be able to monitor biological changes during and after the spaceflight. The Butterfly IQ+ is also being tested aboard the ISS.
Once the astronauts splash down, they immediately conduct a series of balance and perception tests. This will provide researchers with valuable data of how the human body’s ability to balance degrades over time.
Finally, as Hayley Arceneaux will be the first person in space with a prosthetic, she will be testing out a test bed. Based on the results, this could lead to NASA astronauts being allowed to have prosthetics.
The only thing I didn’t find among the sources was a cargo manifest of, what I presume would be, crew supplies and science experiments in the fragile end.
Sorry I missed it. What I’m finding is more American alphabet soup. Yuck.
The Dragon Inspiration4 crew
Inspiration4 crew in 0-G rehearsal in the Vomit Comet before launch. (Credit: John Krauss)
The Inspiration4 mission will see C207-2 Resilience carry four civilian astronauts lead by Mission Commander Jared Isaacman, Mission Pilot Dr. Sian Proctor, Chief Medical Officer Hayley Arceneaux and Mission Specialist Christopher Sembroski in a Low Earth Orbit and demonstrate an alternative use of the crewed Dragon 2 space capsule.
Mission Commander Jared Isaacman. Born on February 11, 1983, Isaacman is the CEO and founder of Shift4 Payments, a payment processor used by roughly 250,000 entities.
In 2004, Isaacman began taking flight lessons. Due to the success of Shift4 Payments, Isaacman had the opportunity to get type rated in a number of military jets. This allowed him to, in 2009, set the record for circumnavigating the globe in just under 62 hours.
This world record flight also served as a fundraising event for the Make-A-Wish foundation. Additionally, Isaacman has performed in a large number of airshows as part of the Black Diamond Jet team.
As the Mission Commander and sponsor, Isaacman represented the Leadership on the Inspiration4 mission, which will be his first mission to space.
Mission Pilot Dr. Sian Proctor. Dr. Sian Proctor was born on March 28, 1970 in Hagåtña, Guam. Proctor has been in love with space since a young age, as her father worked on the Guam Remote Ground Terminal, during the Apollo era. Her family later moved to the continental US, where she went to high school.
She graduated from Fairport High School before attending Edinboro University. Dr. Proctor graduated with a Bachelor’s in Environmental Science in 1992. In 1998, she graduated from Arizona State University with a Master’s in geology. Finally, in 2006 she received her Ph.D in science education.
Dr. Proctor is now a science communicator and a geology professor at South Mountain Community College, in Phoenix, Arizona. She is also the aerospace education officer for the Civil Air Patrol’s Arizona wing.
Dr. Proctor was a final candidate in the 2009 NASA Astronaut group (Group 20). However, Dr. Proctor was not selected, which makes the Inspiration4 mission her first mission to space.
The Prosperity seat was awarded to a contestant who created a successful Shift4Shop, selling whatever they could dream of. Dr. Proctor created a Shift4Shop to sell her art and poetry. Additionally, contestants had to create a video about their shop and how they’ll use this opportunity to inspire people. After the shop took off, she was awarded the Prosperity seat on the Inspiration4 mission.
Chief Medical Officer Hayley Arceneaux. Born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on December 4, 1991, at the age of 29 Arceneaux will be the youngest American to orbit the Earth.
At 10 years old, Arceneaux was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, which is a type of bone cancer. Her parents turned to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for her treatment. After a number of surgeries, including a knee replacement, and chemotherapy, Arceneaux won her battle with cancer. Her experience at St. Jude’s inspired her to get her Physician Assistant degree, allowing her to help other cancer patients at St. Jude’s.
In 2014, Arceneaux received an undergraduate degree in Spanish. In 2016, she obtained her Physician Assistant degree, allowing her to receive her current job at St. Jude Children’s Hospital.
Due to Arceneaux’s story, she represented Hope on the Inspiration4 mission. Isaacman’s goal is that showing a childhood cancer survivor going to space will inspire children suffering from childhood cancer, and give them hope. Arceneaux stated “I’m going to space not physically perfect; with this rod in my leg, I would have immediately been disqualified [from NASA’s astronaut program].”
Mission Specialist Christopher Sembroski. Born on August 28, 1979 and grew up in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Sembroski graduated with a Bachelor’s in science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautic University, then joined the US Air Force as an electro-mechanical technician.
During his years in college, Sembroski served as a counselor at Space Camp, an educational camp in Huntsville. He also volunteered for ProSpace, a non-profit organization that advocates for private spaceflight.
Sembroski was selected for the Inspiration4 mission after his friend was chosen for the Generosity seat, but was unable to make the flight. However, as Sembroski had also donated to St. Jude’s for a chance to win the Generosity seat, Sembroski’s friend transferred the win to Sembroski, as he has been a lifelong space fan.
Crew Dragon 207-2 Resilience
The Crew Dragon that supported the Inspiration4 mission was Crew Dragon C207-2. C207 previously supported the NASA Crew-1 (USCV-1) mission, where it launched NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker along with JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi to the International Space Station (ISS). Ahead of the Crew-1 launch, the astronauts announced that they had named the spacecraft Resilience.
Resilience splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico on May 2, 2021, and was later recovered by SpaceX’s recovery ship GO Navigator. The Crew Dragon was then taken to SpaceX’s Dragon refurbishment center (nicknamed “Dragonland”), at the Cape, where it spent the following months undergoing a series of inspections, refurbishments, and upgrades.
The most notable upgrade made to Resilience is an upgraded SuperDraco abort system. The amount of propellent stored on the vehicle has increased, which allows for Crew Dragon to launch in stronger offshore winds, while ensuring the crew’s safety. SpaceX also replaced parts of titanium in the SuperDraco with steel, further increasing the safety of the abort system. The same upgrades were made to C206 between SpaceX’s Demonstration Mission 2 and the Crew-2 mission.
SpaceX also strengthened part of Dragon’s structure allowing Dragon to withstand stronger secondary splashes. A secondary splash is the splash after the initial splashdown that could damage the vehicle under certain conditions. To ensure Dragon does not get damaged, NASA and SpaceX have strict splashdown weather criteria, and by strengthening the structure of Dragon these criteria were re-evaluated, increasing the amount of acceptable splashdown conditions.
Most notably, the Inspiration4 mission marked the first Dragon to be equipped with a glass cupola. The cupola is installed in replacement of the docking adapter on the nose of Crew Dragon, under the moving nosecone. Once the nose cone opens, the forward Draco thrusters and cupola will be exposed to space. The astronauts will then have to open an airlock to be able to access the cupola.
Where to land the Dragon?
The opportunity for Inspiration4 to return to Earth will be determined by the weather condition on these seven splashdown zones in and around Florida's waters.
Seven hazard areas for landing Dragon C207-2 - Recovery Location 5 has been chosen
The SpaceX Inspiration4 mission in the Crew Dragon spacecraft, named Resilience, is scheduled to end its journey Monday, November 8 at 19:06 EDT - 23:06 UTC. Recovery of the Crew Dragon spacecraft will aim for a splashdown at one of three targeted landing zones in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida.
Resilience will after the trunk is jettisoned at 18:11 EDT - 22:11 UTC perform its deorbit burn at 18:16 EDT - 22:16 UTC and close the nose hatch cover. Then Resilience will reorient itself with its heat shield forward and enter the Earth's atmosphere.
Four minutes before splashdown, the drogue parachutes will deploy at about 18,000 feet in altitude while Crew Dragon is moving approximately 350 miles per hour, and less than a minute later, the main parachutes deploy at about 6,000 feet in altitude while the spacecraft is moving approximately 119 miles per hour.
For normal crew rescue and recovery operations, the NASA and SpaceX teams select two primary splashdown locations from the seven possible locations about two weeks prior to return, with additional decision milestones taking place prior to crew boarding the spacecraft, during free flight, and before Crew Dragon performs a deorbit burn.
NASA and SpaceX closely coordinate with the U.S. Coast Guard to establish a 10-nautical-mile safety zone around the expected splashdown location to ensure safety for the public and for those involved in the recovery operations, as well as the crew aboard the returning spacecraft.
The SpaceX recovery fleet should have it easy with a Cape Canaveral LZ. It’s just a daytrip.
Teams on the Go Navigator or other available recovery ships, including two fast boats, will be securing Inspiration4 Dragon and ensuring the spacecraft is safe for the recovery effort. As the fast boat teams complete their work, the recovery ship will move into position to hoist Crew Dragon onto the main deck of the ship with the astronauts inside.
Once on the main deck, the crew will be taken out of the spacecraft and receive medical checks before a helicopter ride to shore.
