Inspiration4, scheduled to launch on September 15, will be the first-ever shuttle to launch into orbit with a crew comprised entirely of civilians.
The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will launch from the Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A, the same site used by several Apollo and Space Shuttle missions.
The mission will see the shuttle travelling across a low Earth orbit over several days, during which the crew will conduct several experiments related to micro-gravity, among other things. The spacecraft is designed to hold up to seven passengers, but the crew will consist of only four members, with the extra space being allocated to scientific equipment, as well as room to carry out projects and conduct research.
The purpose of the Inpiration4 mission is to not only raise awareness and funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital but also to expand our knowledge of the known universe and space travel’s effects on the human body. The mission was initially announced back in February of this year. The all-civilian crew, led by Jared Isaacman, was selected in March, and training began shortly thereafter.
Jared Isaacman
Twitter Jared Issacman
Isaacman is the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, a company that he started in 1999 at the age of sixteen. The company now employs over 1,200 people. The New Jersey native started repairing computers when he was just 14-years-old. By the time he was 16, he had dropped out of high school to accept a full-time job from one of his clients.
An experienced pilot, Isaacman attempted to set the record for circumnavigating the globe in a light jet in 2008. He made the trip in 83 hours, just shy of beating the 82-hour record. In 2009, he made a second attempt, this time shattering the existing record by a full 20 hours, with a final trip time of 61:51. Both flights were performed as fundraising events for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
He’s also an active member of the Black Diamond Jet Team, participating in over 100 air shows. Every performance has been dedicated to a charitable cause. In 2011, he co-founded Draken International, the world’s largest private air force, designed to train pilots for service in the United States Armed Forces.
Isaacman will take command of the Inspiration4 mission and its members, a team he himself played an active role in assembling. As the mission’s benefactor, he purchased all four seats that will be occupied by himself and his three other crewmembers.
Dr. Sian Proctor
Twitter Dr. Sian “leo” Proctor
Sian Proctor, born in Guam in 1970, holds a B.S. in Environmental Science, an M.S. in Geology, and a Ph.D. in Science education and is currently a geology professor at South Mountain Community College in Phoenix, Arizona. She’s also a media personality and has appeared on Discovery Channel’s post-apocalyptic reality show The Colony, Science Channel’s Strange Evidence, and an episode of Genius by Stephen Hawking.
In 2009, Proctor was one of over 3,500 applicants for NASA’s astronaut selection process. She was chosen as one of the 47 finalists but ultimately did not make the final cut. In 2020, she took part in a simulated Mars mission conducted by NASA and the University of Hawaii designed to study crew cohesion. She spent four months in a habitat on the flank of the Mauna Loa volcano. Now, finally, her dreams will be realized.
Hello everyone, thank you for supporting my #SpaceArt & #Poetry journey. I hope you’ll check out my @Shift4Shop: https://t.co/pUOcwAwmE1 & help share my #inspiration4contest message & #poem. Let’s unleash our #Space2inspire & create a J.E.D.I. future for all of humanity. ❤️????? pic.twitter.com/JzRf6ayGcL
— Dr. Sian “Leo” Proctor (@DrSianProctor) February 26, 2021
Though Isaacman will lead the mission, Proctor will assume the role of mission pilot. The shuttle’s autopilot eliminates the need for any sort of manual control, so Proctor’s responsibilities will lie in monitoring various systems and ensuring that everything is working properly. She also plans to remotely teach one of her classes from the shuttle, raising further awareness of the mission as well as promoting civilian space flight.
Hayley Arceneaux
Twitter Hayley Arceneaux
Then there’s 29-year-old Hayley Arceneaux, who works at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as a physician assistant. When she was ten, what her doctor thought was a simple knee sprain turned out to be osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. It was through her current employer, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, that her condition was treated. After a dozen rounds of chemotherapy, extensive physical therapy, and a limb-preservation surgery that left her with a replaced knee and a titanium rod in her left thigh bone, not only is she perfectly healthy, but she’s healthy enough to become the youngest American to go into space.
Isaacman wanted a St. Jude employee on the crew, which is what led to him ultimately choosing Arceneaux, but it would be a tremendous disservice to chalk her involvement up to being in the right place at the right time. She’ll serve as the mission’s chief medical officer but will also be in charge of many of the onboard experiments. Throughout all of this, she’s been using her newfound celebrity status to promote and raise funds for St. Jude.
Last day of training with my amazing crew. We have loved our time at SpaceX SO much and are forever grateful to the incredible team making our flight possible ?❤️ pic.twitter.com/skLm09eiid
— Hayley Arceneaux (@ArceneauxHayley) September 9, 2021
Chris Sembroski
Twitter Inspiration4
Finally, there’s Air Force veteran Chris Sembroski, who’s dreamt of going to space ever since he was young, stargazing from the roof of his high school. That desire continued through his formative years and into his adult life, where he eventually became a U.S. Space Camp counsellor, where he was in charge of conducting simulated space shuttle missions.
He wasn’t originally part of the Inspiration4 crew, however. It was one of Chris’s closest friends (and the best man at his wedding) that, along with Sian Proctor, won the lottery that landed him a seat on the shuttle. However, his friend decided not to go, and instead floated Sembroski’s name to mission commander Isaacman. Isaacman agreed that Sembroski was a good candidate, and now the man who flew high-power model rockets as a child is going to experience a considerable upgrade.
Sembroski, who currently works at Lockheed Martin as a data engineer, will be the mission’s payload specialist. That means he’ll be in charge of overseeing the cargo, making necessary repairs, and serving as a technical expert for some of the various systems onboard.
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