SpaceX, entrepreneur invite public to apply for trip to orbit
SpaceX is planning to fly a group of civilians into Earth’s orbit later this year — and with the help of a billionaire, it’s giving everyday space enthusiasts a chance at two of the seats.
“This is an important milestone toward enabling access to space for everyone,” SpaceX founder Elon Musk said during a news conference Monday. “At first, things are very expensive, and it’s only through missions like this that we’re able to bring the costs down over time and make space accessible to all.”
Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, an integrated payment processing and technology solutions company, announced that he’s buying a flight in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. Isaacman, 37, will be the commander, and he’s paying for three other people to ride with him.
In addition to helping people reach microgravity, Isaacman would like to inspire support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital,
based in Memphis,
Tenn.
As such, he’s donating two seats to St. Jude. The first seat is reserved for a health care worker who is helping kids fight cancer. The second seat will be given to an individual who enters the sweepstakes at inspiration4.com. The sweepstakes encourages participants to donate to St. Jude, but this is not required. Isaacman is donating $100 million and hopes to raise more than $200 million.
“I believe that in the future everyday people will explore amongst the stars,” Isaacman said. “But before that, we better have defeated some of life’s greatest hardships. St. Jude’s mission is not about rockets or space exploration. It’s about treating some of the most heartwrenching conditions that any parent could imagine. And if we’re going to continue making advances up there in space, then we have an obligation to do the same down here on Earth.”
The fourth seat will go to an entrepreneur who uses
the new Shift4Shop eCommerce platform. The entrepreneur must have an online store and then share his or her entrepreneurial journey on Twitter. A panel of celebrity judges will review the top trending videos and select the most inspiring entrepreneur.
This mission, called Inspiration4, is not the first civilian spaceflight to be announced this year. Last week, Houston-based Axiom Space announced the three members of its private crew set to launch next January. They are American real estate and technology entrepreneur Larry Connor, Canadian investor Mark Pathy and Israeli impact investor Eytan Stibbe.
Each is paying $55 million to launch aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon and then spend eight days on the International Space Station conducting research and philanthropic projects. The fourth member of their crew will be former NASA astronaut and Axiom Vice President Michael López-Alegría.
“More private missions to space are great for everyone,” Axiom said in a statement. “To normalize private spaceflight and drive costs down over time, it is essential now for as many of those who can go — or can sponsor others to go — to do so. We applaud SpaceX and all involved in the Inspiration4 mission to Earth’s orbit, and others like it sure to come, as we look forward to our missions to the International Space Station.”
Isaacman did not disclose how much he’s paying for the four seats that will launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. His trip will not go to the International Space Station. Musk estimated the trip could spend two to four days orbiting the Earth, though he’s giving Isaacman leeway on how much time is spent in space. “Whatever Jared would like to do, it’s up to him,” Musk said.
During this time, the crew will conduct experiments for St. Jude and other educational institutions. They will return to Earth by splashing down off the coast of Florida.
Isaacman, who Forbes reports has a net worth of $2 billion, launched Shift4 Payments in 1999 when he was 16. It started from the basement of his family’s house.
Shift4 handles payments for a third of America’s restaurants and hotels, Forbes said, and Isaacman took the company public last year.
His other passion is flying. On Monday, he recalled looking at space shuttle books and telling his kindergarten teacher that he would go into space.
“She told me that she’d be watching in a rocking chair someday,” Isaacman said. “So my passion for aviation and the dream of going to space has really been lifelong.”
Isaacman has a bachelor’s degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and he’s rated to fly military and commercial aircraft.
He’s flown in more than 100 airshows as part of the Black Diamond Jet Team, where he’s dedicated the performances to charitable causes.
In 2011, Isaacman co-founded Draken International, which provides tactical aviation services for all branches of the U.S. military. With a fleet of 150 tactical fighter aircraft, Draken owns and operates the world’s largest commercial fleet of ex-military aircraft to support military training objectives around the globe. Isaacman sold the company in 2019 to the Blackstone Group and remained CEO until early 2020.
For the spaceflight, the Inspiration4 crew training will include operating in microgravity, emergency preparedness and getting in and out of their spacesuits and spacecraft.
There will also be mission simulations and stress testing.
But taking it one step further, Isaacman said he’s planning activities that will get the crew familiar with one another and used to being, well, uncomfortable.
“Just drawing on some of my other passions, I am going to ensure that I introduce some very uncomfortable and stressful situations here on Earth long before we go up in space,” Isaacman said. “I’m a little bit of a mountain climber, and I intend to get four people in a tent — that I can attest is absolutely smaller than the Dragon spacecraft — on a mountain when it’s snowing out.”