It’s evident to all, that technology is adapting as per the needs of people. It’s growing and developing to meet our needs, but not for once would anyone has thought that one of those needs would be vacationing in space. However, Inspiration4 has beaten all odds and accomplished the (once upon a time thought) impossible.
On 16th September 00:02:56 UTC, the Inspiration4 was launched and ended successfully on 18th September 2021 at 23:06:49 UTC. The mission completed the first orbital spaceflight with only private citizens aboard and was part of a charitable effort on behalf of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis Tennessee. The crew and mission intended to raise upwards of US$200 million to expand St. Jude’s childhood cancer research.
All this had initially stemmed from billionaire tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman’s announcement to the world that he would embark on a new type of spaceflight solely comprising of private citizens rather than trained professionals. Isaacman gifted the three adjacent seats to him to people with inspirational stories from St. Jude’s staff, through an entrepreneurial competition, and via a charity lottery.
This is perhaps best illustrated in 29-year-old Hayley Arceneaux, the first person with a prosthetic body part to go to space. She overcame bone cancer as a child and as an adult has gone back to work for the medical facility that cured her – the St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Mr Isaacman wants to raise $200m for St Jude’s work.
Dr Sian Proctor, 51, is a geoscientist, a science communicator, and the 4th Black woman from the U.S. to travel to orbit. She actually came close to being a Nasa astronaut in 2009 but missed out in the final round of selection. Dr Proctor won her seat through her role as an artist and by demonstrating her entrepreneurial skills. She plans to paint while looking out the Dragon’s domed window.
Chris Sembroski, 42, is a US Air Force veteran and works as an engineer with aerospace company Lockheed Martin. He’d made a donation to St Jude that also entered him into a lottery draw for the fourth position in the crew. His friend snagged the seat through the lottery and, after deciding not to go, transferred it to him.
This mission was key for the evolution of science and its purposes. There has been the discovery of unbelievable science and research from the space station, such as the Protein Crystal Growth experiment which provided insights into numerous treatments for diseases, from cancer to gum disease. But if there are plans to go to the Moon again or Mars and beyond, it’s vital for us to take a step out of our comfort zone and innovate the impossible.
Inspiration4 has depicted this exact vision. It has allowed research to reach new and exciting prospects as well as stimulate the advancement of science and opportunities for its development as a whole. At this point in time, literally and absolutely anything, seems possible. It could be just a couple of years till buying tickets to space becomes as common and monotonous as buying movie or plane tickets. Indeed, this launch gave hope to people of the larger society, indicating that these achievements can very well be attained by them as well.
As a fellow Science and Tech enthusiast, I believe that humanity has barely grazed its finger over the tip of the iceberg, and that there is much more that awaits us in the field of research and exploration. As Forczyk states: “You won’t be flying in a Pan Am space plane on your way to a giant rotating space hotel just yet, but who’s to say what the future might hold. This is a brand-new industry in its infancy, and we’re seeing the first steps. We don’t know how far it’s going to run.”