Commercial space travel is on the rise and streaming platforms can capture it for those who are unable to afford its multi-million dollar price tag. Netflix will begin airing the first two episodes of Countdown. Inspiration4 Mission to Space. This is the first series to focus on SpaceX's launch of the first all-civil crew. The next episode will follow the preparations for the launch at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on September 15. The first two episodes of Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space will air on September 5th. A feature-length film about the mission will air in late September.
The series is directed by Jason Hehir, a veteran sports documentaryarian best known for The Last Dance. It will take viewers behind the scenes at the Inspiration4 mission from astronaut selection through training and takeoff. The trip is being billed by Netflix and SpaceX as well as the passengers, SpaceX and SpaceX characters introduced in the first episode. It's a paradigm shift for space exploration, an opening in commercial space travel and a small, but important advancement towards the proliferation of rocket transport. This will also be a new frontier in reality TV.
Inspiration4 is just one step in the journey towards a Jetsons world, where everyone will jump in their spacecraft to journey in other worlds. Jared Isaacman (38-year-old billionaire chief executive at Shift4 Payments) told the Guardian that Inspiration4 was only a small step. He said that he doesn't think it will be just a few people for long. He compared space travel today, which is being done by private companies like Blue Origin or Virgin Galactic at exorbitant prices, to the early days in experimental aviation. It is beginning with a few people, but it will soon open up to many more.
Commercial space travel is still a highly-expensive and exclusive club, largely driven by the super-rich. However, live-streams are available for everyone else. Blue Origin streamed Jeff Bezos' launch on July 11th on its YouTube channel. Amazon Prime also had it on Amazon Prime. Virgin Galactic also streamed Richard Branson's 59-minute space flight live on YouTube. They also recruited a TikTok celebrity for a future trip. As space tourism grows in environmentally-sensitive ways, it is a fact that reality TV will follow suit. In April, Nasa signed the Space Act Agreement with Space Hero to facilitate initial cooperation and information sharing to create a competition show that would send a winner to the International Space Station by 2023.
There's a game show underneath Countdown, the Netflix series whose first two episodes primarily serve to introduce viewers the civilian astronauts. They are selected through a Willy Wonka-like arbitrary selection process that is tied to four core mission principles.
Isaacman (Leadership), declined to disclose the amount paid for the mission, but said that the proceeds would be used to support the pediatric cancer specialists at St Judes Childrens Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee. The group also includes Hayley Arceneaux (29-year-old) who was a survivor of pediatric cancer and a physician assistant at St Judes. Sian Proctor (51-year-old), a Geology Professor from Phoenix, Arizona who won a spot in Inspiration4's competition (Prosperity). Chris Sembrowski (Genettttttttttetttt (Generosity).
These are all new figures to astrodynamics. They are not used to the spotlight and cameras. This is a far cry of Hehir's mission on The Last Dance in which his team attempted to de-iconize an iconic celebrity like Michael Jordan. Hehir assured the Guardian that Countdown will not build the iconography of Inspiration4 in real-time. He said that he didn't view it as SpaceX's role to promote the company. It was important to explain their mission because the first question is always, "Is there another billionaire going into space?". What's the point? The point is to have ambition and see what else is out there. In a charitable sense, the point is to raise $200m for St Judes.
This is the most common criticism levelled at SpaceX and private space travel in general. One Hehir asks mid-sentence why billionaires would go to space, when there are so many earthbound issues that must be addressed, including the climate emergency. Isaacman responded to the backlash in the first episode by saying: "We absolutely believe in balance here. We have always said, right from the beginning, since the creation of Inspiration4, we believe in balance. He pointed to the fundraising efforts for St Judes.
Photograph: John Kraus/2021 Inspiration4 2021/Netflix/AFP/Getty Images
Elon Musk, SpaceX's billionaire founder, appears in the episode to give a brief overview of the Inspiration4 mission (civilian orbital flight) and the company as a whole (colonization on Mars). Hehir stated that it was essential to have Musk in the episode, as he is the face and voice of SpaceX. I feel that we owe it our viewers to him to do two important things. First, to explain the company's mission and second, to respond to the criticism of billionaires going to space.
Hehir stated that I didn't have any interest in mythologizing the company or making it appear that they were the saviors for the world. However, I believe it is important to understand the ambitions of the company if you want to understand their mission.
If everything goes according to plan, the final episode will show the Inspiration4s crew's successful return to Earth. It was produced in a matter of days and turned around quickly. Each episode focuses on the inherent risks of space travel. Proctor remembers seeing the Challenger explosion on television in 1986. This was captured on camera by Grace and Edward Corrigan's shock and grief. Christa McAuliffe was a New Hampshire schoolteacher who would be the first American civilian to go into space.
She explained to the Guardian that she understands what calculated risk and what the reward are, and that the reward of human spaceflight far outweighs the risk.
Proctor was born on Guam where her father worked at Nasa's Apollo tracking station. She will be the fourth African-American woman to travel to space. Only 600 people have done so to date. Proctor, who is brimming with an Ms Frizzle-esque enthusiasm about space exploration and will be using her spot aboard Inspiration4 as a way to highlight the important role of black women in American space travel. She said that we were opening the doors for people who would not normally consider going into space or becoming an astronaut. It also gave them insight into the process and the changes taking place.
Old space was exclusive. To be considered the best you needed to meet certain criteria. This is new space, which allows us to allow anyone to participate in the story of human space flight.
It remains to see if the narrative of a more democratic space will become reality and if Inspiration4 will overcome the skepticism surrounding ultra-expensive, privately funded satellite flight. The mission and all associated messaging will be televised so that you can see the vast frontier from your own screen.
