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SpaceX is preparing to send four individuals on a groundbreaking mission that will orbit Earth over its poles for the first time. Here’s what you need to know about this historic journey.
SpaceX is set to launch a private spaceflight, Fram2, carrying four passengers, including cryptocurrency billionaire Chun Wang, on a historic mission over Earth's poles. This is the first human spaceflight to follow a true polar orbit. The crew, composed of Wang and three polar explorers, will conduct scientific research on weightlessness, motion sickness, sleep patterns, and other health-related studies. The mission will last three to five days before returning with a splashdown off the California coast.
A team of four, led by a cryptocurrency billionaire, is set to launch aboard a SpaceX capsule on a historic mission over Earth’s poles—the first of its kind.
The crew is scheduled to lift off from Florida within a 4.5-hour launch window starting at 9:46 p.m. ET on Monday.
Chun Wang, a Malta-based investor, is financing the mission, named Fram2 after a Norwegian exploration ship that ventured to the North and South poles in the early 20th century.
Wang, who built his wealth through bitcoin mining, paid SpaceX an undisclosed amount for the mission. He will be joined by three polar explorers he met through his travels—Norwegian filmmaker Jannicke Mikkelsen, German robotics researcher Rabea Rogge, and Australian adventurer Eric Philips.
None of the crew members have been to space before.
“My own journey has been shaped by lifelong curiosity and the fascination with pushing boundaries,” Wang said on Friday during an audio-only Spaces event on X, the social media platform owned by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
Fram2 is designed as a unique mission that honors the crew’s passion for polar exploration, similar to other notable private spaceflights such as SpaceX’s 2021 Inspiration4 mission.
This mission stands out as no humans have previously traveled directly over Earth’s poles from space, requiring a more fuel-intensive flight path than standard equatorial orbits.
For instance, astronauts aboard the International Space Station cannot see Earth’s polar caps since the ISS orbits closer to the equator. The closest any human spaceflight has come to the poles was the Soviet-era Vostok 6 mission in 1963.
However, while Vostok 6 flew at a 65-degree inclination, Fram2 will target a 90-degree orientation, flying perfectly perpendicular to the equator.
During the mission, the crew will contribute to scientific research by providing data on how their bodies respond to weightlessness and motion sickness—common challenges for astronauts.
Fram2 is expected to remain in space for three to five days before making a splashdown landing off the coast of California.
Sources:https://edition.cnn.com/2025/03/30/science/fram2-space-tourism-spacex/index.html
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