Latest news with #memorialspaceflight
Times of Oman
07-07-2025
- Science
- Times of Oman
German space capsule lost carrying ashes of 166 people
Bavaria: Bavaria-based startup The Exploration Company (TEC) says it is investigating the loss of a space capsule that was carrying the ashes of 166 people back to their families. The "Nyx Mission Possible" craft had been due to return the ashes to Earth — and the bereaved — after orbiting the planet twice in late June. However, an anomaly occurred and the capsule was lost during its planned re-entry. What did TEC say about the missing capsule? In a statement posted on professional networking site LinkedIn, TEC said it had re-established communication with the capsule upon reentry — after a standard blackout because of the heat — before losing it again. "From an orbital altitude of 550 kilometers [about 340 miles], the capsule re-entered successfully in a controlled manner, with communication established post maximum heat. Communications were, however, lost at 26 km altitude, just before the transonic phase preceding the opening of the parachutes." "To better understand the outcomes, we have established an independent investigation team. Their findings will be shared with our clients, investors, and internal teams." In an earlier statement, TEC apologised "to all our clients who entrusted us with their payloads." What more do we know about the flight? Charles Chafer, co-founder and CEO of the Texas-based "memorial spaceflight" company Celestis, who hired TEC, said it was the first time that such a reentry had been attempted. "As a result of this unforeseen event, we believe that we will not be able to recover or return the flight capsules aboard. We share in the disappointment of our families, and we offer our sincerest gratitude for their trust." "Though we currently believe that we cannot return the flight capsules, we hope families will find some peace in knowing their loved ones were part of a historic journey, launched into space, orbited Earth, and are now resting in the vastness of the Pacific, akin to a traditional and honored sea scattering." As well as the human remains, the Nyx capsule had been carrying cannabis plant material and seeds for a citizen science project to study the viability of growing cannabis on Mars. In 2024, Celestis sent the remains of several people connected with the cult series "Star Trek" on a final journey into space, including the series' creator, Gene Roddenberry and his wife, Majel Barret Roddenberry, who was one of the actors.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Human remains lost after memorial spaceflight capsule crashes into the sea
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A space capsule included on a recent SpaceX launch almost survived its decent back to Earth, so The Exploration Company is deeming their mission a "partial success". A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the Transporter-14 rideshare mission June 23, sending 70 payloads from different customers into orbit. The satellites included cubesats and other spacecraft bound for low-Earth orbit, as well as two reentry capsule designed for recovery back on Earth. The first came from Varda Space — the company's fourth "Winnebago" series spacecraft designed to test first-of-its-kind on-orbit pharmaceutical manufacturing. Its mission is still underway. The second, Tranporter-14's largest payload and the last to be released, was European spacecraft manufacturer The Exploration Company's "Mission Possible" Nyx capsule, carrying remains contributed by loved ones through Celestis Memorial Spaceflights. Celestis offers various tiers of space memorial services that range all the way to launching remains into deep space. Their "Earth Rise" package includes launching DNA of customers' deceased loved ones (or even pets) into space and returning them to Earth. Unfortunately, their return this time around did not go as smoothly as planned. For their 25th launch, dubbed "The Perseverance Flight", Celestis paired with The Exploration Company's Mission Possible to carry its memorial payload to space and back aboard the Nyx capsule. At least that was the plan. Nyx performed nominally throughout its entire mission, all the way up until just minutes before its expected Pacific Ocean splashdown. "The capsule was launched successfully, powered the payloads nominally in-orbit, stabilized itself after separation with the launcher, re-entered and re-established communication after black out," the company wrote in an online update. For any spacecraft reentering through Earth's atmosphere, a period of communication blackout occurs as intense friction with surrounding air forms a layer of superheated plasma around a vessel's hull. Following the most intense stages of falling back from orbit, communications are typically reestablished during a ship's last stretch to landing. Nyx's return, up to that point, was no different — until it was. The Exploration Company's capsule encountered an anomaly shortly after reestablishing communications. "[Nyx] encountered an issue afterwards, based on our current best knowledge, and we lost communication a few minutes before splash down. We are still investigating the root causes and will share more information soon," the company said in their update. Nyx's parachute failed to deploy, according to a later statement form Celestis. "The parachute system failed, resulting in the Nyx capsule impacting the Pacific Ocean and dispersing its contents at sea," they said. In short, the capsule and its contents plummeted into the drink. "Though we currently believe that we cannot return the flight capsules, we hope families will find some peace in knowing their loved ones were part of a historic journey, launched into space, orbited Earth, and are now resting in the vastness of the Pacific, akin to a traditional and honored sea scattering," Celestis said. The Exploration Company echoed that sentiment. "We apologize to all our clients who entrusted us with their payloads," their update reads. Mission Possible was The Exploration Company's second foray into space, and the first for its Nyx capsule, which they are designing with the intent of transporting crew and cargo to and from LEO and beyond. And they aren't letting the snag at the end of the endeavor slow them down. "We have been pushing boundaries in record time and cost. This partial success reflects both ambition and the inherent risks of innovation. Leveraging the technical milestones achieved yesterday and the lessons we will extract from our ongoing investigation, we will then prepare to re-fly as soon as possible," the company said.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX rideshare mission carried more than 160 capsules of human remains: Here's why
The remains of more than 160 deceased people reached orbit on a spacecraft that hitched a ride on a SpaceX rocket. And it's not the first time that a company from Texas has worked with a launch provider like billionaire Elon Musk's commercial spaceflight company to provide cosmic memorial services to those who may not favor a traditional burial. Since 1994, Celestis has offered about two-dozen memorial spaceflights to transport the remains of loved ones beyond Earth's atmosphere. This time, though, the mission that got off the ground from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Southern California was designed to return from orbit in a major first. While an "anomaly" prevented the spacecraft bearing the memorial capsules from making a gentle landing, the payload did indeed make it to orbit – and even twice circled Earth. Here's what to know about Celestis' memorial spaceflights, as well as its latest mission to transport human remains to orbit. California rocket launches: Here's a look at the upcoming SpaceX schedule from Vandenberg Celestis is a company based in Houston, Texas specializing in transporting human remains to space for cosmic memorials. Capsules containing DNA and human remains are included as payloads on spacecraft launched into orbit by other companies, including SpaceX. Celestis' services allow for families to pay for cremated remains in capsules or DNA to be launched into space, where they can either return intact or remain until they reenter Earth's atmosphere, "harmlessly vaporizing like a shooting star in final tribute," the company says on its website. In another offering, the company facilitates the transportation of memorial capsules to interplanetary space well beyond the moon. Celestis' most recent payload of memorial capsules was included in a SpaceX rideshare mission known as Transporter 14. The mission got off the ground Monday, June 23 from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County. SpaceX's famous Falcon 9 rocket then delivered 70 total payloads, including small satellites, for paying customers to a sun-synchronous orbit, meaning they matched Earth's rotation around the sun. For its most recent mission, a total of 166 individual Celestis memorial capsules were on board a Nyx spacecraft manufactured by Europe-based The Exploration Company (TEC,) which hitched a ride on the Falcon 9. Among those whose remains on board the flight was Wesley Melvin Dreyer, an aerospace engineer selected by NASA to be on the team that investigated the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986. The launch, Celestis' 25th overall mission since it was founded in 1994, was meant to be Celestis' first-ever to return from an altitude high enough to be considered Earth's orbit. The Nyx module reached low-Earth orbit, where it traveled for three hours at about 17,000 miles per hour and completed two full orbits around Earth. But instead of safely reentering Earth's atmosphere to land in the Pacific Ocean as planned, the Nyx spacecraft experienced a parachute failure that resulted in it crashing into the sea. As a result, a team was unable to recover the capsules to return them to their families, Celestis co-founder and CEO Charles M. Chafer said in a statement. "We believe that we will not be able to recover or return the flight capsules aboard. We share in the disappointment of our families, and we offer our sincerest gratitude for their trust," Chafer said in a statement provided to the USA TODAY Network. "We hope families will find some peace in knowing their loved ones were part of a historic journey, launched into space, orbited Earth, and are now resting in the vastness of the Pacific, akin to a traditional and honored sea scattering." Celestis previously made headlines in January 2024 when its plans to land human remains on the moon's surface attracted some controversy. The plan was for the remains and DNA of more than 70 deceased people to be included on a lunar lander bound for the moon. That included remains from 'Star Trek' creator Gene Roddenberry and science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke. But Navajo Nation, the largest tribe of Native Americans in the United States vehemently opposed the lunar burial, penning a letter decrying the plans as "a profound desecration." Ultimately, though, the remains never made it to the moon's surface anyway. Pittsburgh-based aerospace company Astrobotic's Peregrine lander fell short of its destination when it began leaking a "critical" amount of propellant – instead burning up in Earth's atmosphere after launch. Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@ This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Company sends human remains to orbit for SpaceX launch from California
