SpaceX's first all-civil spaceflight this month is being carried out by the private Inspiration4 astronauts. Today (Sept. 6), Netflix will launch a documentary series about them.
The new Netflix series "Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space" will follow the four-person crew as they prepare to launch to orbit in real-time. This four-episode series, co-produced by Time Studios, follows the crew as they travel and shows their transformation from "regular" people to full-fledged astronauts.
"I've stated it since the beginning, that Inspiration4 has always been in the stars every step of the journey," Jared Isaacman, the billionaire Shift4 tech entrepreneur, crew commander, said to Space.com in an exclusive interview. He chartered the SpaceX Crew Dragon flight, which he used to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. It's all amazing, from the timing to get this chance, to the selection process for the crew, to this incredible crew that I'm privileged enough to fly to space with.
Related: Inspiration4 -- SpaceX's historic private flight in photos
Image 1: Four SpaceX's Inspiration4 crew pose alongside a mockup of a NASA spaceship at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, Alabama. Image credit: John Kraus/Courtesy Netflix. Image 2 of SpaceX's Inspiration4 crew poses with a Saturn V Rocket at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, Alabama. Image 3 of SpaceX's Inspiration4 crew poses for a group shot with their mission emblem at U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, Alabama. (Image credit to John Kraus/Courtesy Netflix) Image 4 of SpaceX's Inspiration4 crew pose for a group photo or pose before their private orbital mission launch in September 2021. From left to right: Jared Isaacman (Shift4), Sian Proctor (geoscientist), Hayley Arceneaux (bone cancer survivor) and Chris Sembroski (data engineer). (Image credit: John Kraus/Courtesy Netflix)
Isaacman stated that "I think we all lost sight of the fact there was a document made throughout all this." We are so grateful that they did. Because we haven't had the chance to pause for even a second over these five months to reflect on all these important milestones. We are happy that they do this for us. We are so glad they do it for us all.
"Because," said he, "that's why Inspiration4 was supposed to be all аbout: inspiring people. I think that will be covered in fairly decent detail throughout this documentary."
Sian Proctor is a geoscientist and professor, as well as a space artist. She told Space.com she appreciated "knowing that Netflix captured not only me story but also all of our space story and in a thoughtful way that can easily be shared with everyone." Proctor and Isaacman will be launching alongside Hayley Arceneaux, a St. Jude physician's assistant who was a child cancer survivor, and Chris Sembroski, data engineer.
Space.com's Jason Hehir, series director of "The Last Dance", said that it was the most complicated production plan he's ever been involved in. He added that it was difficult to keep track of different crew members' training times and zones while simultaneously working towards a space launch. "This production is more ambitious than any I've ever been part of, on many levels."
Photos: SpaceX displays Dragon's large dome window for Inspiration4 flight
Inspiration4 crew experiences weightlessness during zero-g flight. (Image credit: Inspiration4/John Kraus)
Despite all the difficulties, Hehir's passion to capture the Inspiration4 journey through training, and ultimately to space and back has only grown.
He said that there have been previous flights with civilians aboard, as well as crews of fully-civilian astronauts who have reached suborbital orbital space. However, this mission will be the first ever all-civilian one to orbit Earth.
Hehir stated that this was a "true mission to space" and added that ordinary people will "operate a spacecraft for three consecutive days as it orbits Earth. This is higher than any person has been since Apollo missions. The ambition of this endeavor is inspiring.
He said, "And the characters... are everyday people but extraordinary in their own way." It's been inspirational and really enjoyable. It's been great to get to know them. These guys are now my friends and crew members. We're going be nervous, excited, and will feel a lot of emotions on launch.
The crew of astronauts is feeling the excitement about their impending voyage and sharing their stories with the rest of the world via this docuseries.
"The idea of being able bring as many people on this journey as possible with us in almost real time is amazing. That's what I find exciting. It takes me back to those days, when my parents were on Guam during Apollo. People tuning in and watching in real-time. Proctor was also born in Guam because her father worked at NASA's Guam Remote Ground Terminal during Apollo.
"Bringing the whole story together and inspiring the next generation. She said that she hoped that the end result would be that the world is inspired to follow us on our journey.
Proctor stated, "It's about opening up space access so that more people can have this experience and also bring humanity forwards towards the moon, Mars, and beyond." "And while we do that, you know what? While we solve for space, also we solve for Earth. That's the main message at the end. We hope this resonates with the space community and the rest of the world.
Chelsea Gohd can be reached at cgohd@space.com. Follow her on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @Spacedotcom
