The Inspiration 4 astronauts are training hard for their upcoming launch on a SpaceX rocket later this year

The four private astronauts, Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arcenaux, Sian Proctor and Chris Sembroksi are training hard for their launch later this year on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. It will the first time ever no 'professional astronauts' on board in a crewed mission to space. 

Their training began with a centrifuge at The National Aerospace Training and Research (NASTAR) Center in Pennsylvania. Following that, the four astronauts hiked up the side of Mount Rainier in Washington to a base camp thousands of feet above sea level. Backpacking trips like this are a tradition and an important part of training for astronaut crews ahead of their missions. 

Sian Proctor hiking Mount Rainier with the rest of the Inspiration4 crew.  

(Image credit: Sian Proctor/Twitter)

They will continue training before the launch, including orbital mechanics, operating in microgravity and zero gravity environments, stress testing, emergency preparedness training, mission simulations, and learning about the Falcon 9 launch vehicle and Dragon spacecraft. The launch date is planned to be NET 15 September 2021. They will launch in the Crew Dragon Resilience on the Falcon 9 rocket. 

Crew Dragon Resilience at the Kennedy Space Center.

Image Credit: NASA

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Author: Wei Hao (Malaysia)