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Four amateur astronauts are due to spend about three days in orbit in a world first, after they blasted off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on Wednesday evening.

The Inspiration4 mission, backed by SpaceX, was organised by entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, who is also one of the passengers.

They are the first all-civilian crew ever to circle the Earth from space.

During their trip, those on board will carry out a series of science experiments before returning home.

So who are the four crew members, how did they get there and what will happen in the next 72 hours or so.

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A giant leap in commercial space travel

Who are the amateur astronauts?

The four people aboard the Dragon capsule are Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski, and Dr Sian Proctor.

Mr Isaacman is the man behind the mission, and paid an undisclosed sum to get the project off the ground.

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The 38-year-old made his money with a payment processing company – like SpaceX head Elon Musk – and now also operates a private air force.

Jared Isaacman. Pic: Inspiration4 / John Kraus
Image:
Jared Isaacman. Pic: Inspiration4/John Kraus

An experienced pilot, he wants the journey to raise awareness for St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

The other three members of the crew were selected according to Mr Isaacman’s conditions.

Hayley Arceneaux, 29, is an employee of St Jude’s, and had cancer during her childhood.

Taking someone from the hospital was a condition from Mr Isaacman.

Ms Arceneaux, a physician’s assistant, is the first person to travel to space with a prosthesis – part of her right femur was replaced by a metal rod during a bone cancer battle at the age of 10.

Dr Proctor, 51, is an entrepreneur and trained pilot herself.

She won her seat through a competition based on a set of business-related tasks.

(L-R) Chris Sembroski, Dr Sian Proctor, Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arcenaux. Pic: Inspiration4 / John Kraus
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The four space tourists have defined roles. Pic: Inspiration4/John Kraus

The scientist previously applied for NASA‘s astronaut programme but was unsuccessful – but is now in space.

Last up is Chris Sembroski, 42, a US Air Force veteran who now works for Lockheed Martin.

He was selected from a lottery of people who donated to St Jude’s – a competition which received around 72,000 entries.

What are their roles?

The four space tourists have defined roles, according to their backgrounds.

They have been branded leadership, hope, prosperity and generosity.

Mr Isaacman is leadership, and he will be the mission commander in charge of the operation.

Hope is Ms Arceneaux, who will act as medical officer and will help with experiments being carried out – many of which are medically based.

Dr Sian Proctor. Pic: Inspiration4 / John Kraus
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Dr Proctor unsuccesfully applied to be a NASA astronaut. Pic: Inspiration4/John Kraus

Dr Proctor is prosperity and the mission pilot. She will support Mr Isaacman.

Generosity is represented by Mr Sembroski, who is the mission specialist and will help “manage payload, science experiments, communications to mission control and more”.

What will they do?

Most of the experiments being carried out by the crew are “to increase humanity’s knowledge on the impact of spaceflight on the human body”.

SpaceX, the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and the Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City will analyse the data collected.

What experiments will they do

  • Collecting “research-grade ECG activity, movement, sleep, heart rate and rhythm, blood oxygen saturation, cabin noise and light intensity”
  • Test behavioural and cognitive function using computer software
  • Ultrasound scans for organs to see if non-experts can get good quality image and see how spaceflight affects the body
  • Draw and test blood to see how the immune system functions in space
  • Testing motor function before and after the flight

How is the ship controlled?

The crew are aboard a Dragon capsule, a reusable pod developed by SpaceX.

It can seat up to seven people, and has been to the International Space Station 25 times – 10 of which were repeat journeys.

The Dragon capsule has room for seven people and solar panels to provide power
Image:
The Dragon capsule has room for seven people and solar panels to provide power

It is capable of carrying 365lbs (166kg) of cargo, which is being used for scientific equipment and crew essentials on this journey.

Solar panels on the outside of the craft are used to generate power for the capsule and crew.

The touchscreen control panels in the capsule allow the crew to monitor telemetry
Image:
The touchscreen control panels in the capsule allow the crew to monitor telemetry

The vessel is largely automatically controlled, with a set of large touch screens instead of the traditional-looking dashboard of buttons, levers and toggles for the pilots to observe.

The pilots can also take control of the capsule with the touchscreens.

Sixteen Draco thrusters are used to direct the vehicle after it separates from the take-off rocket, and it has a set of parachutes for landing.

How are they getting back?

A splashdown of a Dragon capsule. Pic: NASA
Image:
A splashdown of a Dragon capsule. Pic: NASA

After the orbiting is complete, the capsule will head back to Earth.

According to the official plan, this will culminate in a “soft water landing” off the coast of Florida.

After re-entering our planet’s atmosphere, two “drogue” parachutes are deployed, before four main canopies are released.

The crew and vessel will then be retrieved from the water.

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Trump pick Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration to be US attorney general

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Trump pick Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration to be US attorney general

Donald Trump ally Matt Gaetz has withdrawn his name from consideration to be the next US attorney general.

Mr Gaetz, a controversial pick to be the country’s top legal official, said his selection was “unfairly becoming a distraction” to the transition of Mr Trump’s administration into the White House.

The Florida Republican had faced significant scrutiny over a federal investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl.

He said in a post on the X social media platform: “There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as attorney general. Trump’s DOJ (Department of Justice) must be in place and ready on Day 1.

“I remain fully committed to seeing that Donald Trump is the most successful president in history. I will forever be honoured that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I’m certain he will Save America.”

Mr Trump said in a post on his own social media site, Truth Social, that Mr Gaetz had a “wonderful future”.

“I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be Attorney General,” he wrote.

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“He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the administration, for which he has much respect.”

Mr Gaetz previously faced a nearly three-year Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl, which ended in February 2023 without him facing any criminal charges.

He has always denied the allegations.

He has also been under scrutiny by the House Ethics Committee over wider allegations including sexual misconduct, illicit drug use and accepting improper gifts.

The inquiry was dropped on Wednesday 13 November when Mr Gaetz left Congress – the only forum where the committee has jurisdiction.

The Senate ethics committee is deadlocked on whether their report can be released.

Mr Gaetz’s withdrawal is a blow to Mr Trump’s push to install steadfast loyalists in his incoming administration and the first sign that he could face resistance from members of his own party.

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Dad who called 911 for help during break-in killed by Las Vegas police officer

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Dad who called 911 for help during break-in killed by Las Vegas police officer

A 43-year-old man was shot dead by police after calling 911 to report intruders had entered his home in Las Vegas.

Brandon Durham was at home with his 15-year-old daughter when he called the emergency line to report armed intruders were trying to break into his property on 12 November.

Bodycam footage shows Mr Durham struggling with a person over a knife in the moments before he was shot and killed at the scene.

“The loss of life in any type of incident like this is always tragic, and it’s something we take very seriously,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Assistant Sheriff Dori Koren said on Thursday.

The force is investigating the incident.

Mr Durham called 911 to report multiple people were outside shooting at his residence in Las Vegas’ Sunset Park neighbourhood, where he had been staying with his 15-year-old daughter, Sky News’ US partner network NBC reports.

It was one of multiple emergency calls reporting a shooting in the area.

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Mr Durham then said someone had managed to get into his home through the front and back doors of the property and he was locking himself in the bathroom, according to a police statement from 14 November, two days after the incident.

Officers reported to the scene at approximately 12:40am and could hear screaming from inside the residence.

One of the officers, Alexander Bookman, kicked open the front door and once inside, saw Mr Durham and another individual, later identified as 31-year-old Alejandra Boudreaux, struggling over a knife in a doorway.

Mr Bookman ordered them to drop the knife and about two seconds later, the officer fired the gun and Mr Durham appeared to be struck, the bodycam footage shows.

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Both Mr Durham and Mr Boudreaux fell to the ground and the officer fired another five shots. Roughly three seconds are believed to have gone by between the first and last shot, NBC reports.

Attempts were made to save the 43-year-old but he died at the scene.

Ms Boudreaux was taken into custody and is facing charges of home invasion with a deadly weapon; assault with a deadly weapon domestic violence; willful or wanton disregard of safety of persons resulting in death; and child abuse, neglect or endangerment.

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Homeless man charged in plot to bomb New York Stock Exchange

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Homeless man charged in plot to bomb New York Stock Exchange

A homeless man has been arrested and charged over a plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange.

The 30-year-old man from Florida, Harun Abdul-Malik Yener, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with attempting to use an explosive device to damage or destroy a building used in interstate commerce, having unveiled some of his plans to undercover agents, according to the FBI.

They began investigating Yener in February based on a tip that he was holding “bomb-making schematics” in a storage unit.

Bomb-making sketches, many watches with timers, electronic circuit boards and other electronics that could be used for building explosive devices were found, the FBI said.

It also said he told undercover FBI agents that he wanted to detonate the bomb the week before Thanksgiving and that the stock exchange in lower Manhattan would be a popular site to target, and that doing so “will wake people up”.

An agent also allegedly recorded him saying: “I feel like Bin Laden.”

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He described how he hoped the bomb would “reboot” the US government, explaining that it would be “like a small nuke went off,” killing everyone inside the building, according to court documents.

The documents also claim he had rewired two-way radios so that they could work as remote triggers for an explosive device and planned to wear a disguise when planting the explosives.

Yener, who had also searched online for things related to bomb-making since 2017, was sacked from his job at a restaurant in Florida last year after his former supervisor said he threatened to “go Parkland shooter in this place”, the FBI added.

He had his first court appearance Wednesday afternoon and will be detained while he awaits a trial.

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