(WWJ) – It may be a bit of a morbid topic, but many people think about how they want to be memorialized after they die.
And for fans of outer space, a new trend is taking hold – sending loved ones’ ashes into orbit for “a funeral in space.”
Mike Murray of the Delta College Planetarium in Bay City tells WWJ’s Erin Vee on “All Over the Space” it’s been an idea for decades, but it’s just finally starting to become a reality.
“It’s only been more recently that small companies have been able to use sounding rockets – most of them don’t go into orbit – but rather they will fly up high enough to get into what’s technically outer space,” Murray said.
Murray says some companies offer options for rockets to come back down with a parachute and return the vial to families, but other options “send them up high enough and they’ll re-enter the atmosphere as a shooting star.”
“Hey, talk about a way to go out,” he said.
One Metro Detroit family recently launched their father’s remains into space, using the company Beyond Burials, which partners with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, according to a story from The Detroit News.
Murray says these space funerals range anywhere from $1,500-10,000.
More information on the Delta College Planetarium in Bay City can be found online. Follow the planetarium on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news and updates.
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