Looks like planets and stars aren’t gonna be the only things floating in space.
SpaceX is sending cremated remains to space! It’s a “space burial!”
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket is taking the cremated remains of 152 people into space. This will be the third launch for SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy—the most powerful operational rocket in the world.
But for these ashes to enter orbit as intended, SpaceX first has to pull off what Elon Musk, the rocket company’s founder, has called “our most difficult launch ever.” It’s organized by a company called Celestis Memorial Spaceflights. They except small ash samples of deceased loved ones. The ashes are packed into small metal capsules, which are then placed into a container fitted onto a host satellite to be sent to space.
For this event, the remains are inside the Orbital Test Bed (OTB), one of the 24 satellites being launched, which were developed by many organizations including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA,) DoD research laboratories, universities and NASA.
MRL asked each other where they would want their ashes and well…their answers were pretty much what we assumed.
Roy – in a panda exhibit
Maney – baseball field around the corner from where he grew up
LauRen – wants someone to travel to the places she never got to go to on her bucket list and spread some at each place
Producer Nicole – eternal reef
To read more about the mission click here.
Intern Lynleigh Betchan – The MRL Morning Show
