Semafor Signals PostEmailWhatsapp Sign up for Semafor Flagship: The daily global news briefing you can trust. Read it now. The News SpaceX successfully launched the private Polaris Dawn from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida Tuesday, marking a milestone for commercial space travel that could see the first-ever non-government spacewalk. The mission is funded and piloted by billionaire Jared Isaacman, and is set to fly its four-person crew higher above the Earth — 870 miles — than any other...

The News NASA has tapped Elon Musk’s SpaceX to de-orbit and destroy the International Space Station when it retires in 2030. The ISS, which has been operational for more than two decades, is a rare point of international collaboration between Europe, Russia, and the US — but it is getting too old to function. Whatever replaces it will not have the same importance as a geopolitical beacon of hope, as both China and Russia plan to go their own way in space. SpaceX reportedly reached a valuation...