Historic SpaceX flight to launch with only private citizens on board

CNBC's Morgan Brennan reports from Kennedy Space Center, where SpaceX looks to launch the first spaceflight with only private citizens on board. For access to live and exclusive video from CNBC subscribe to CNBC PRO: https://cnb.cx/2NGeIvi

Elon Musk’s SpaceX is set to make history with a launch of four civilians in what would be the first full crew of nonprofessional astronauts to fly to space.

The mission, known as Inspiration4, is scheduled to lift off Wednesday night, with a five-hour window that opens at 8:02 p.m. ET.

The mission is the creation of SpaceX and billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, 38-year-old founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments. Isaacman purchased the multiday flight from SpaceX for an undisclosed fee, with the goal of raising awareness and funding for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

“This is significant and historic because it’s going to be the highest that any humans have gone into orbit since the Hubble [Space Telescope] servicing missions,” SpaceX senior director of human spaceflight Benji Reed told reporters Tuesday. The last Hubble servicing mission was in May 2009. “Another historic part for SpaceX is that this will be the first time that we have three [Dragon capsules] in orbit.”

Isaacman and the Inspiration4 team have worked with SpaceX to train since announcing the flight in February. He noted that the crew on Tuesday met with company leadership — including Musk, who “gave us his assurances again that the entire leadership team is solely focused on this mission.”

Asked how he felt with less than 24 hours to liftoff, Isaacman said he had “no jitters, excited to get going.”

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule was developed with heavy investment from NASA, which has flown 10 of its professional astronauts on the spacecraft. While the space agency has comparatively minimal involvement in the Inspiration4 launch, NASA director of commercial spaceflight Phil McAlister told CNBC that private missions were one of the goals set when contributing government funds to SpaceX’s vehicle.

“We are seeing a sort of renaissance in commercial orbital human space transportation,” McAlister said. “For the first time in human history, you can go to a private company and purchase a ticket to orbit. You’ve never been able to do that; historically, you had to go to a government agency.”

One of the key factors for launching on Wednesday night remains the temperamental Florida weather, which will affect the timing of liftoff and the capsule’s splashdown a few days later.

“We look at not only the launch weather but we have to look at the return weather,” Reed said.

The U.S. Space Force’s 45th Space Wing forecast that the weather has a 80% probability of being clear to launch during Wednesday’s five-hour window. If SpaceX decides to postpone the launch, the next available opportunity would be Thursday.

SpaceX will broadcast steady live coverage of the launch, from four hours before liftoff to until the spacecraft reaches orbit.

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