Space Capsule Carrying Ashes Of Over 160 People Crashes Into Pacific Ocean

A space capsule carrying the ashes of 166 people crashed into the Pacific Ocean after two successful orbits around the Earth. According to the New York Post, a German startup called The Exploration Company (TEC) launched the Nyx capsule on June 23 as part of the program "Mission Possible". Its cargo included the remains of 166 people, whose ashes were sent into orbit through Celestis, a Texas-based space burial company. However, things didn't go exactly to plan as the capsule encountered an "issue" after its launch and plummeted to Earth, dropping into the Pacific Ocean.

In a statement, the company said that 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," but then things went off script. As per the New York Post, the company stated that it "lost communication" with the capsule "a few minutes before splash down." It added that it is still "investigating the root cause". 

"We apologize to all our clients who entrusted us with their payloads," the company said in a statement in the letter.

"We all hoped for full success; partial success is often part of the road for those who take risks and push boundaries to change the world positively. I take full responsibility and present my apologies to our customers for not achieving full success," said TEC CEO Helene Huby in a LinkedIn Post. 

Celestis, a Texas-based space burial company which was part of the mission, stated that this was the first Celestis mission in which ashes were "designed to return from orbit". However, it noted that due to the crash into the Pacific Ocean, the ashes were dispersed at sea. As a result of this, they believe that they would "not be able to recover or return the flight capsules aboard."

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"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," the company said in a statement, according to People. 

Notably, ashes weren't the only thing on board the space capsule. Cannabis plant matter and seeds launched as part of a citizen science project called Martian Grow were also on board the capsule, per the outlet. 

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