Space photo of the week: Space X's Polaris Dawn astronauts 'touch the void' on 1st-ever private spacewalk

What it is: An image of private astronaut Jared Isaacman on the first-ever commercial spacewalk

Where it is: Partially outside the hatch of the SpaceX Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft, which was at an altitude of 458 miles (737 kilometers) above Earth's surface at the time

When it was shared: Sept. 12, 2024

Why it's so special: The 106-minute jaunt through empty space that crowned SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission represents the first-ever spacewalk by a commercial crew.

On Sept. 10, 2024, four private astronauts — Isaacman, pilot Scott Poteet and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon — launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft.

Around 15 hours later, the team reached an altitude of 870 miles (1,400 km), the highest altitude reached since the Apollo missions, Live Science's sister site Space.com reported.

From there, the spacecraft plummeted hundreds of miles and depressurized the cabin before Isaacson and Gillis briefly stepped out of the capsule. The duo was conducting mobility tests in new spacewalk suits designed by SpaceX, which could potentially be used for future missions to Mars.