"The Earth looks perfect!" The first words of billionaire Jared Isaacson from outer space have become known

Shift4 Payments CEO and billionaire Jared Isaacman, who sponsored the SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission and made a historic private spacewalk on September 12, shared his first impressions. Looking at our planet from the vast expanse of the Universe, he said: "At home, we have a lot of work to do, but from here the Earth looks like a perfect world."

The Polaris Dawn spacewalk took place at an altitude of over 700 km above the Earth. According to SpaceX, mission commander Isaacson became the first non-professional astronaut in history to enter the space vacuum, DailyMail reports.

The world watched the historic spacewalk live via an online broadcast. Only two of the four crew members of Polaris Dawn stepped out of the Dragon capsule and looked at Earth from space with their own eyes.

Before opening the capsule's valve, all crew members – Jared Isaacson, pilot Scott Potit, and SpaceX engineers Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis – underwent a suit check to make sure the helmet's projection display was working and there were no air leaks. After all, the Dragon spacecraft has no airlock, and all astronauts on the mission had to feel the effects of the harsh space breath after opening the capsule. Nevertheless, this fact has set another Polaris Dawn record - the simultaneous stay of four people in the vacuum of space.

After the leak test was completed, the astronauts received pure oxygen to breathe until the pressure inside the capsule dropped.

Experts emphasize that one of the biggest risks that the Polaris Dawn crew had to face was the extreme pressure changes between the sealed Dragon capsule and the vacuum of outer space. When the cabin releases its pressure into space, astronauts can experience symptoms similar to what you experience during a rapid ascent in an airplane.

However, the effects can be much more serious. Because, just like deep sea divers, when astronauts enter the space vacuum, the sudden pressure drop can cause the dissolved nitrogen in their blood to expand into bubbles. These bubbles can cause a condition called decompression sickness, otherwise known as bends, which can be fatal in severe cases.

To avoid decompression sickness, the Polaris Dawn crew inhaled a high-oxygen gas mixture for two days to purge their blood of nitrogen.

After completing the leak test, the astronauts received pure oxygen to breathe until the pressure inside the capsule dropped.

When the adaptation was complete, Isaacson opened the ship's hatch in stages to weaken any resistance and release the remaining atmosphere.

Before exiting the capsule, Jared climbed a ladder that SpaceX called a "skywalker." Once he finally saw the endless space emptiness in front of him, he couldn't help but admire the views. In outer space, Isaacson also performed a set of pre-planned movements designed to test the capabilities of the new EVA suit.

Interestingly, unlike the spacesuits used by NASA astronauts, SpaceX suits receive life support only through an umbilical cord connected to the ship, not through a built-in system. While this makes the suits much more mobile, it also means that the 3.7-meter umbilical cord is the only thing that will get in the way of spacewalking.

After completing the mobility tests, Jared returned to the capsule. Instead, mission specialist Sarah exited the ship and performed the same set of movements.

This was the first time SpaceX's new extravehicular activity (EVA) suits were tested outside the laboratory. Therefore, it was very important for the company to see how they would withstand the harsh conditions of space.

While exiting the capsule, Gillis informed the control room that some of the seals around the hatch had been damaged due to the pressure change. However, these changes were expected, so Sarah was able to fix everything.

According to SpaceX, mission pilot Kid Potit and specialist Anna Menon remained seated in the capsule, managing the umbilical of the suit and monitoring vital support systems and telemetry on Dragon displays.

After the individual spacewalks were completed, the hatch was closed and the pressure in the capsule was stabilized.

According to experts, going outside the protective walls of a spacecraft is considered one of the most dangerous tasks astronauts can perform. In the case of the Polaris Dawn mission, this risk was only exacerbated by the fact that none of the crew, except for Isaacson, had ever been in space before.

The Polaris Dawn mission was launched on September 10. On the sixth day, the extreme journey will end with a landing off the coast of Florida.

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