Beyond Polaris Dawn: Alum and Astronaut Jared Isaacman Explores Future of Space
Embry-Riddle alumnus Jared Isaacman (‘11) has a lot to be proud of, including performing a history-making civilian spacewalk as commander of the Polaris Dawn mission on Sept. 13, 2024, for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Polaris Dawn was not his first sojourn into space — he previously commanded Inspiration4, the world’s first all-civilian mission to orbit, in September 2021 with fellow Embry-Riddle alumnus Chris Sembroski (’07).
During his latest trip to space, Isaacman was joined by fellow crew members Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis; Mission Specialist Anna Menon; and Pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet. This team made up Isaacman’s partners in the mission, which he called “a critical milestone on a far, far bigger adventure.”
We recently had the opportunity to sit down with Isaacman to talk about his passion for space exploration, the future of the space industry and its development, as well as words of advice for current and prospective Embry-Riddle students who want to know, “What’s next?”
How Does it Feel To Make History?
When asked what he’s taken away from his latest accomplishment, Isaacman is humble. “I’ve been incredibly lucky and just thrilled to be able to see so much amazing work happening around me … and contribute in a small way.”
Isaacman’s achievements are anything but small. In addition to founding two highly successful companies, he financed both Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn.
His commitment to philanthropic ventures is also remarkable and inspiring. “To the extent that you can,” he explains, “you need to try and leave the world a better place than you found it.”
A primary goal of his most current mission was to test an advanced extravehicular spacesuit that may be the prototype for the interplanetary travel wardrobe of the future.
But Isaacman focuses on the teamwork behind his history-making mission. “It took so many people — an army of people — to create and test new technology,” says Isaacman. “And they’re doing it not for me … or any other crew members, but for a really exciting future that many people can live in.”
Included in that future are Isaacman’s two daughters — 10 and 8 — who haven’t quite wrapped their arms around the significance of the mission. According to Isaacman, they have yet to understand the magnitude of the history that Gillis and Menon have made as two women who have traveled further than any other woman in space. “They probably think it’s way more routine than it is, which is awesome, because as they grow up, it will be routine.”
‘We Don’t Have a Choice Not To Proceed’
While Isaacman spent considerable time talking about the overall impact of the mission, he also discussed the testing that prepared them for the grueling conditions in space. The Polaris Dawn team spent over two and a half years on development training, the testing of equipment and on operations, including moving around in their new high-tech, advanced spacesuits.
Even the violin of Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis — who performed “Rey’s Theme” from the movie “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” — needed to undergo rigorous testing.
Even after all the preparation, Isaacman said, space can seem a dark and threatening place.
“There’s no atmosphere; there’s radiation. There is micrometeoroid debris … We have to keep going just as the explorers did hundreds of years ago, and along the way … life will be better for humankind. So, we don’t have a choice not to proceed. We just kind of have to go with caution.”
Jared Isaacman — Embry-Riddle alumnus and commander of the Polaris Dawn
Mission — shares his perspectives on the past, present and future of space exploration.
Back to His Embry-Riddle Roots
Polaris Dawn traveled to orbit on top of a Falcon 9 rocket in a Dragon spacecraft that carried the Embry-Riddle-built LLAMAS multi-camera system, developed under the direction of Dr. Troy Henderson, director of the Space Technologies Lab and associate professor of Aerospace Engineering. LLAMAS — which stands for “Literally Looking At More Astronauts In Space” — captured video of crew operations during the expedition, and those images will be used to create virtual reality experiences.
Additionally, Dr. Amber Paul, assistant professor in Embry‑Riddle’s Department of Human Factors and Behavioral Neurobiology, and her Omics Lab for Health and Human Performance will process biospecimens collected from the crew to assess the influence of space missions on human health.
Isaacman was thrilled to work with his alma mater, particularly on the LLAMAS project, in which he was heavily involved.
“Especially [as a result of] my connection back to Embry-Riddle, having gotten to work on a project that would ultimately fly on our vehicle; get exposed to the vacuum of space; bring back data — it gets exciting. So, I was thrilled for it.”
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
When asked about the future, Isaacman highlights the contributions of SpaceX to space exploration and the future of humankind. “The amount of testing that takes place behind the scenes — the process, the review, the rigor — is intense,” he says. Because of the company’s fail-fast iterative design process, they still make big things happen, despite all of that structure.
Even so, opportunities abound in the burgeoning space industry, both directly and indirectly, in areas such as human factors, the space economy, space manufacturing and even mining asteroids. While SpaceX is doing the heavy lift in the industry now, Isaacman says we’re at a pivotal moment for all of humankind. “There’s going to be a lot of opportunity for … inspired dreamers to make a difference.”
Isaacman is happy to support and inspire his fellow Eagles along the way.
“[The space industry] is going to grow at an exponential rate. It’s going to be hard to fathom how many people are going to have opportunities to be in space.”
And Embry-Riddle students and alumni are primed to take advantage of those opportunities.
The full interview with Jared Isaacman is available for playback online.
Posted In: Engineering | Human Factors | Research