SpaceX To Launch First 4 Civilians Into Space This Year

On Monday, SpaceX announced it will send four space tourists to orbit Earth on “the world's first all-civilian mission.”

What Happened: SpaceX will take four civilians aboard its Crew Dragon Capsule, launched by one of its Falcon 9 rockets, to outer space to orbit Earth during the fourth quarter this year.

The Inspiration4 mission will be piloted by Jared Isaacman, CEO of Shift4 Payments, who plans to donate the other three seats “to crew members who will be selected to represent the mission pillars of leadership, hope, generosity, and prosperity.”

Isaacman will donate the proceeds of the tickets to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

Why It Matters: SpaceX has aimed to take tourists to space since its inception and offer “commercial flights for private passengers to both Earth and Lunar orbit.”

SpaceX is led by Elon Musk, who also serves as the CEO of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA). In an appearance on Clubhouse on Monday, Musk discussed the space venture, likening the early exploration of Mars to keeping the “candle of civilization alive in the dark.”

Virgin Galactic (NYSE: SPCE), a public company that also plans to offer civilians trips to space, on Monday confirmed plans for a test flight of SpaceShipTwo Unity that could happen as soon as Feb. 13. The company's shares surged 9.26% in the after-hours session at $58.77 after closing the regular session 21.45% higher.

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