You Can Now Be "Buried" On the Moon 72
Dave Knott writes: Space burials are longer the stuff of science fiction (and wealthy science fiction TV show creators.) The cremated remains of more than 450 people have been shot into orbit. Yet, despite the promise of space being a unique "resting place," almost every tiny vial of remains ever sent there has come back down to Earth or burned up upon re-entry. This wouldn't have happened had the ashes landed on Earth's moon — a fact that hasn't been lost on the companies pioneering this futuristic funeral technology. The San Francisco-based company Elysium Space officially launched its 'lunar memorial' service earlier this month, and will soon be sending the remains of a U.S. Army Infantry Soldier's mother upwards as part of its first ever moon burial.
The company's website further explains how the lunar burials will work: "You receive a kit containing a custom ash capsule to collect a cremated remains sample. After we receive the ash capsule back from you, we place your capsule in the Elysium memorial spacecraft. The latter is eventually integrated to the Astrobotic lander during the designated integration event. From here, the lander is integrated onto the launch vehicle. On launch day, the remains are carried to the moon where the lander will be deployed to its dedicated location, preserving our memorial spacecraft for eternity." Because Elysium can only send a small portion of cremated remains to the moon (less than a gram), participants aren't actually paying to have their loved ones literally buried on the moon. However, this has not deterred the company from launching the service, charging $11,950 per "burial".
The company's website further explains how the lunar burials will work: "You receive a kit containing a custom ash capsule to collect a cremated remains sample. After we receive the ash capsule back from you, we place your capsule in the Elysium memorial spacecraft. The latter is eventually integrated to the Astrobotic lander during the designated integration event. From here, the lander is integrated onto the launch vehicle. On launch day, the remains are carried to the moon where the lander will be deployed to its dedicated location, preserving our memorial spacecraft for eternity." Because Elysium can only send a small portion of cremated remains to the moon (less than a gram), participants aren't actually paying to have their loved ones literally buried on the moon. However, this has not deterred the company from launching the service, charging $11,950 per "burial".
Clyde Tombaugh got a better one (Score:5, Interesting)
Clyde Tombaugh got a better funeral for his ashes - Pluto. Quite fitting and hard to beat within the solar system.
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He's just one in a long Ceres.
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Yeah, but he didn't planet that way.
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hard to beat within the solar system.
Easy to beat. Launch your ashes onto another planet instead of some funny little misclassified rock :-)
Likely wind up in the dumpster behind the place (Score:1)
And will you care? No.
Can you send a genetic sample instead? (Score:2)
Can you send a genetic sample instead? Because I know people who'd be willing to pay for this right now.
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He was paralyzed, poor thing, after being conked during sex. This is all he can manage to type out with his eyelids.
That's a MOOOOOOVING story.
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That's the worst pun I've heifer seen.
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That's the worst pun I've heifer seen.
Well played, Hognoxious! well played indeed, sir.
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Inert? (Score:1)
Why would you choose to be buried in such an inert way? I much prefer the thought that future generations on Earth will breathe the molecules of my decomposed corpse.
Re:Inert? (Score:5, Funny)
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Well, maybe you don't choose it, but your family is like, we were thinking of filling the grave with concrete, but now we can shoot the bastard to the moon and finally be really, really rid of him.
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Because by climbing into the cenotaph, and creating a micro-sized subspace vacuole to transit to the nearby moon, you will begin the next emanation. At least according to the Vinori.
Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about.
Humans are ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Humans are idiots, dead or alive!
What a waste of resources. The selling argument '...preserving our memorial spacecraft for eternity.' is idotic, nothing is for eternity, in particular this solar system we all know perfectly will eventually be eaten by its Sun.
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The relevant question is what is being "preserved"? Nothing of any relevance to the deceased. Just a tiny amount of ground up carbon and calcium that could have come from anywhere.
What a pointless, stupid, vanity project.
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Humans are idiots, dead or alive!
What a waste of resources. The selling argument '...preserving our memorial spacecraft for eternity.' is idotic, nothing is for eternity, in particular this solar system we all know perfectly will eventually be eaten by its Sun.
At which point your demand to not waste resources will be kinda moot, don'tya think?
12 grand for a trip to luna ? (Score:3)
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Considering each sample is less than a gram over 1,000 can be launched in one kilogram for an income of over $12,000,000.00. Nice payback for one kilogram. Remember this is tagging along on a lander launch that is already paid for by other funding. One additional kilogram will not make much difference and it would be worth $12M.
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not hundres. thousands!
it's a scam. would much more make sense to send a picture.
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Just send your thoughts by radio out in the universe, a powerful and narrow beam toward a likely target and if you are lucky they will be received.
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Color me skeptical. The cost of the fuel and launcher alone would be a few more zero. The only way they could do it at that cost, would be to have hundred of people "buried" in the same launch.
I realize that it's too much to ask people to RTFA, but you could at least RTFS.
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Not only did you not read the article, you didn't even read the summary. How did you know the cost? It must have been beamed into your brain.
Yeah, 'cause we need to litter *everywhere* (Score:2)
What a stunningly stupid idea. We can't settle for littering the places we actually go to; we have to send our crap to places we don't even visit.
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be soone at debate:
which after with sorow,
repents him to late.
Thomas Tusser, 1573
Now? (Score:2)
Moon? No. (Score:3, Insightful)
"Depending on the initial altitude of the latter, our memorial spacecraft will respectfully and peacefully orbit the Earth from a few months to several years."
"Eventually, in a last poetic moment, the spacecraft will harmlessly reenter the Earth’s atmosphere, blazing as a shooting star."
So basically, just like every other 'ashes to space' launch. The word 'moon' appears nowhere.
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Mod this up. Moon is never mentioned.
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Not saying it is worth it or not, but poke around the site for half a minute before you accuse people of scamming.
Price is always subjective anyways, and goods and services are worth whatever people are willing to pay.
That page just explains the general overview
The details of the moon "burial" are here:
http://elysiumspace.com/product/lunar-memorial/
They do explicitly mention on that page that the capsule containing your remains will be "delivered to the lunar surface".
They have different levels of service t
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goods and services are worth whatever people are willing to pay
Something can be morally wrong while still being legal.
For example, I would categorise all the mediums/spiritualists charging bereaved families for messages from their loved ones in heaven to be purely a scam, but it's apparently not illegal.
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Which is where 'how it works' links to. From the always informative
how it works, from the Shooting Star, Lunar Memorial, or Milky Way Memorial.
Who knows....it may not be a scam. But if you want to tell me how the Lunar thing works, then do that. Don't link to something else altogether.
Re: Moon? No. (Score:2)
I wonder what a "respectful and peaceful" orbit is? Geostationary?
Re: Moon? No. (Score:2)
The description you are referencing is their shooting star memorial, they do claim to have a lunar one at: http://elysiumspace.com/produc... [elysiumspace.com]
How about a whole body? Like Professor Jameson? (Score:2)
Circle (Score:2)
Stick with drugs (Score:2)
$12k per gram? I'll stick with cocaine, thanks...
What a waste. (Score:2)
Fuck you. You're dead. I'm not going to pollute the solar system just because you thought it would be cool. You won't even be alive to enjoy it! How fucking stupid.
Ashes? (Score:2)
Heck no - At the very least I want a vial of my blood sealed in amber so alien scientists can dig me up on the moon (After the earth has blown itself up, of course) and use my DNA to recreate Human World...
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what kind of narcissistic crap is this (Score:2)
These fools want to be Ozymandias, king of kings. The Earth doesn't need your kind.
Song (Score:2)
Royal Flush (Score:2)
I have a friend who wants to be "buried" on the moon as follows:
Seated at a Card Table, playing poker
With a Beer
And a Royal Flush in his hands
So that some day Astronomy students can look up and see him.