SpaceX crew to attempt first commercial spacewalk

• For about 15 minutes each, two crew members tethered to the craft will test out upgraded, SpaceX-designed suits as the only barrier between them and space.

Zoom (way) out: The development of the SpaceX Extravehicular Activity suit and the execution of the spacewalk, the Polaris Dawn website explains, will contribute toward designs for "future long-duration missions as life becomes multiplanetary."

• The spacecraft is also set to fly higher than any other Dragon mission to date — venturing to reach the highest Earth orbit by a crewed mission ever.
• It will also carry the first crew to test Starlink laser-based communication system in space.
• While in orbit, the mission team will conduct scientific research focused on human health (both on Earth and during long-duration spaceflights).

Catch up quick: The Polaris Dawn launch was initially scheduled for late August, but was postponed because of a detected helium leak and poor weather conditions.

The big picture: This will be the first of the Polaris Program's three human spaceflight missions.

• The four crew members are also set to reach a record high altitude for an Earth-orbit mission, soaring as far as 870 miles — father than any astronauts have traveled since NASA's Apollo moon missions.

The bottom line: Jared Isaacman, the billionaire commander of the cosmic crew, told CNN the mission "set out to have ambitious objectives."

• Setting the groundwork and developing the technology for a mission to Mars, while it may sound like the stuff of sci-fi flicks, is a key priority for NASA and other space agencies worldwide.
• The Polaris missions aim to advance that aspiration, pushing for the possibility of an interplanetary humanity.
• The crew is expected to spend up to five days in orbit.

Go deeper: The high stakes of SpaceX's dominance in space