– I look extremely tired right now, but it just has to be. That’s what Jannicke Mikkelsen says, when news talks to her from an apartment in Los Angeles. Because even if she can enjoy the sunset from the veranda, there won’t be much time for swimming on the beaches in California. – There are 11–14 hours of training every day. We take stock of everything we will and will not encounter, says Mikkelsen. – It is tiring, and I feel quite exhausted. But I’m looking forward to it. There is little to say about the outlook, but Mikkelsen mostly looks at rockets. Photo: Rolf-Harald Haugen Mikkelsen will be Norway’s first female astronaut, and the first to carry the Norwegian flag in space. – I am looking forward to putting the Norwegian flag on my arm and being able to represent my country. It will be big. No one else has done what she and the rest of the crew will soon do. The assignment is not entirely without risk either. This is a screenshot from SpaceX, taken from the Inspiration4 mission in 2021. Mikkelsen and the rest of the crew can expect something similar. Photo: AFP – We are sitting on top of a rocket. The mission Mikkelsen will be involved in is privately financed by the adventurer Chun Wang from Malta. Together with three others, Mikkelsen will go into polar orbit – 450 kilometers above the earth’s surface. The journey will be the first in the history of space travel to travel in such an orbit. There are many satellites that orbit from pole to pole, but no human has seen the earth from that angle. – I have dreamed of this since I was five years old. I never thought this dream would come true, says Mikkelsen. She has previously taken part in expeditions that entail a certain risk, and makes no secret of the fact that what she is now about to do can be dangerous. – It is an expedition that has a margin of risk, to say the least. We are sitting on top of a rocket, says Mikkelsen. This is what it looked like in 2021 when a Dragon spacecraft was launched into space by a Falcon 9 rocket. Mikkelsen will travel in the same type of spacecraft. Photo: – / AFP Dragon spacecraft from SpaceX Despite the fact that being launched into space involves some risk, Mikkelsen feels safe. – I have confidence in my crew. We have been training for an extremely long time now. And I have confidence in myself and that safety will be taken care of, she says. This is the crew on the Fram2 expedition. From left: Rabea Rogge, Eric Philips, Jannicke Mikkelsen and Chun Wang. Photo: SpaceX/Fram2 It is the American space company SpaceX that will carry out the trip. Mikkelsen and the rest of the crew must therefore undergo training at their headquarters in Hawthorne in Los Angeles, USA. – SpaceX knows what they are doing, and I have confidence in that training. But the training is tough. The training they go through is not the same as ESA and Nasa astronauts do, but it is training to be able to be a crew in a Dragon spacecraft from SpaceX. If all goes according to plan, they could be sent into space before the end of the year. Jannicke Mikkelsen may end up in space before the year is out. Photo: Jannicke Mikkelsen / PRIVAT Will wave home This will be the sixth commercial mission for a Dragon spacecraft, and will be launched into space by a Falcon 9 rocket. The mission has been named Fram2, named after the sailing vessel that polar heroes Roald Amundsen and Fridtjof Nansen used on their polar expeditions. Mikkelsen is happy to continue that legacy. – They are still world famous today, 100 years after they traveled to both the North and South Poles. But what most people may not realize is that they collected extremely important data to expand our knowledge, she says. – What we will also do on the Fram2 journey. We will be collecting extremely important data that will advance our knowledge of the polar regions. This is what it might look like when Mikkelsen and the others are in the room. Illustration: Inspiration4 And while Mikkelsen and the other astronauts gather knowledge, they also become the first to see northern Norway and Svalbard from low Earth orbit. – I have worked hard and long for this, and it feels unreal that the day has finally come, says Mikkelsen. And she knows what to do when she finally gets 400 kilometers above the earth’s surface. – I will wave home and I will wave to everyone who lives on Svalbard. I will wave to everyone I know. Mikkelsen looks up at the stars. Before too long, she’ll be looking down from the stars. Photo: Rolf-Harald Haugen Jannicke Mikkelsen is also a freelancer for news in Svalbard. Published 16.08.2024, at 20.17 Updated 16.08.2024, at 20.25
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Mikkelsen gets ready for space – news Troms and Finnmark
