KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – The first astronauts to orbit the Earth’s poles are set to liftoff on March 31, 2025 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The unprecedented and history making Fram2 mission is the 1st human spaceflight over Earths north and south poles on a free flying mission.

SpaceX is targeting liftoff of Fram2 on March 31, 2025.

Space UpClose team members Ken Kremer and Jean Wright were part of the media contingent that set up remote cameras at Pad39A earlier in the day of March 31

Enjoy a few of our prelaunch photos of SpaceX Falcon 9 Crew some of which were featured in a TV story and interview on Fox 35 Orlando along with our exclusive Fram2 crew photos:

The window opens at 9:46 PM ET March 31 and extends until  2:26 AM ET April 1

There are three additional launch opportunities within the approximate 4.5-hour window: 11:20 p.m. ET followed by 12:53 a.m. and 2:26 a.m. on Tuesday, April 1.

If needed, backup opportunities are available on Tuesday, April 1 starting at the same time.

The mission duration is 3 to 5 days

The Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Fram2 mission on a due south trajectory at 90 degrees inclination into polar orbit with four commercial astronauts on board.

The crew of 4 rookies comprises Mission Commander Chun Wang (who financed the entire mission, Vehicle Commander Jannicke Mikkelsen of Norway, Vehicle Pilot Rabea Rogge of Germany, and Mission Specialist and Medical Officer Eric Philips of Australia.

FOX 35 Orlando Video featuring my prelaunch SpaceX Falcon 9 Crew Dragon and Fram2 crew photos:

Watch the complete live interview on Fox 35 Orlando here at these links:

Video: https://www.fox35orlando.com/video/1615445

Video: https://www.yahoo.com/news/first-astronauts-orbit-earths-poles-201515563.html

Ken has also done Fram2 interviews on WFTV ABC 9 Orlando and WKMG CBS 6 News Orlando

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/space-news/2025/03/24/everything-to-know-about-the-historic-fram2-crewed-mission-set-to-launch-from-florida/

The Fram2  will conduct unique science including the 1^st human x-ray in space and studying the auroras at the poles

The mission name is from the Norwegian ship of exploration ‘Fram’ used to explore the north and south poles a century ago

A live webcast of this mission will begin about one hour prior to liftoff, which you can watch on spacex.com and on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.

The Dragon spacecraft supporting this mission previously flew Crew-1 to and from the International Space Station, Inspiration4, the first all-civilian mission to orbit, and Polaris Dawn, the first commercial mission to conduct an extravehicular activity from Dragon.

This will be the sixth flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-9, RRT-1, Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 1, and two Starlink missions. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

Mission Objectives

During their multi-day mission, Dragon and the crew will explore Earth from a polar orbit and fly over Earth’s polar regions for the first time. They will also conduct 22 research studies designed to help advance humanity’s capabilities for long-duration space exploration and understanding of human health in space.

Throughout Fram2’s time on-orbit, the crew are planning to take the first x-ray in space, perform exercise studies to maintain muscle and skeletal mass, and grow mushrooms in microgravity. Additionally, after safely returning to Earth, the crew plans to exit from the Dragon spacecraft without additional medical and operational assistance, helping researchers characterize the ability of astronauts to perform unassisted functional tasks after short and long durations in space.

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