The four-person Space Explorer will be launched in Polar Orbit Missions on SpaceX next week, allowing you to unlock new realms of space for future spaceflight.
The four-man mission, known as FRAM2, will begin polar orbit on March 31st on SpaceX Dragon Capsule on Falcon 9 rockets in a four-day mission.
SpaceX is targeting a lift-off from Florida's Kennedy Space Center at 11:20pm, at the start of the three-hour EST launch window.
International crews include Malta's mission commander Chun Wang, vehicle commander Norway, German mission pilot Travel Lodge, and Australia's mission medical officer Eric Phillips.
The crew was chosen by the king.
Fulham means “advance” in Norwegian, and the mission was named after the original Fulham ship, which first reached the polar regions of Earth in the 1800s.
According to the FRAM2 Mission website, crews will be the first to see the Earth's poles from low-earth orbit.
The launch of SpaceX's Falcon 9 places the dragon in a circular orbit, still the highest of any human mission.
According to NASA, the International Space Station orbits the Earth at approximately 51.6 degrees.
“After extensive training and dedication from the entire crew, we are honored to continue the Fulham name legacy in an exciting time of commercial space exploration,” Wang said in a statement.
The crew aims to carry out 22 different research experiments during flight. One of these research projects is the Solarmax mission to photograph Aurora Borealis for researchers and citizen scientists.
The crew plans to try out a rare phenomenon known as Steve (strong thermal radiation speed enhancement), a relatively new type of aurora.
FRAM2 attempts to grow oyster mushrooms on orbit as part of its Mushvroom research. This could be useful for Mars missions and farming on Earth.
Crews will use mobile MRI devices to perform several biomedical studies in orbit, including taking the first X-rays in space and studying how space affects female reproductive hormones.
SpaceX said the crew completed final mission training at the company's headquarters in California last week.
