How to watch SpaceX Polaris Dawn crew’s return to Earth

Polaris Dawn mission has completed 5 days in space and SpaceX is now ready to return the crew to Earth with a Dragon splashdown in Florida.

The splashdown will happen on Sunday, September 15 at approximately 3:36 a.m. ET off the coast of Dry Tortugas. Dragon will start all of the reentry process one hour prior to splashdown including:

• Trunk Jettison
• Starting Deorbit burn
• Ending Deorbit burn
• Closing Nosecone
• Deploying Drogue parachutes
• Main parachutes deployment
• Dragon splashdown

You can watch the full Polaris Dawn mission return to Earth on social media site X and its TV app. The broadcast will start one hour prior to the event via SpaceX account.

5 Day journey

On September 10, 2024, at 5:23 a.m., SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 with Polaris Dawn crew. The rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The Dragon spacecraft carried four astronauts including Mission Commander, Jared Isaacman, Mission Pilot Kidd Poteet, Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis, and Anna Menon.

After reaching space, the crew began a two-day pre-breath protocol to prepare for a spacewalk. The first day included research and Starlink tests along an apogee increase to 1,216km. After 6 more orbits, the spacecraft reached the highest Earth orbit at 1,400km.

On Day 2, Dragon lowered its altitude to reach a safe orbit class to perform a spacewalk. It also lowered interior pressure to match the cabin environment closer to the requirements for extravehicular activity (spacewalk). In the meantime, the crew conducted a few scientific researches and conducted a Starlink test.

On Day 3, the Polaris Dawn mission crew created history with the first-ever commercial spacewalk 732.2km above Earth. The crew also tested the new SpaceX EVA suit and its flexibility. Read Day 3 details here.

On Day 4, the crew conducted new research on human health and technologies (read more).

Final Day, Starlink, and research conducted on Day 5 as the in-orbit mission prepares for splashdown.