Rest in Space: What happens to human ashes in space? Do they return to Earth?

We have all heard about scattering ashes of a loved one at sea or with planted trees. But what if we told you that there is an out of this world option — quite literally. Many families are choosing space burials — wherein a portion of a person’s ashes (cremated remains) or a DNA sample is sent into space.

In fact, an American woman, identified as Elizabeth Garcia, who’s lifelong dream it was to travel to space received this out of world tribute when her family blasted off her ashes along with her pet cat’s into space. The burial was carried out by Aura Flights, a UK-based company specialising in space memorials. And as per a New York Post report, a special vessel, bearing her photograph, carried her remains 100,000 feet above Earth, lifted by a specialised stratospheric balloon.

And Garcia isn’t alone. Several people are opting for this way to bid farewell to the world. But the question then is: What happens to these ashes which are scattered in space? Do they contribute to space junk? We explore this and more.

How popular are space burials?

Space is the final frontier and for many people it’s been a lifelong dream to visit it. There’s a growing number of people who are choosing to send their ashes or the ashes of loved ones, including pets, into space.

As Samantha Richardson, general manager of Aura Flights told BuzzFeed, “We do find that our clients come from all skills, all backgrounds, all types of hobbies. As you can imagine, we speak to people that are fanatics of space, or fanatics of Star Wars or perhaps Star Trek, or they love astrology, or they love science. But we also talk to people that just love to travel.”

People in the industry note that a declining emphasis on cultural and religious traditions is one factor why space burials are becoming more popular. There’s also the monetary aspect of it. The cost of sending a loved one’s ashes into space are no longer exorbitant. For instance, Celestis, a Houston-based company provides four options with prices ranging from $2,495 (Rs 2.08 lakh) to $12,500 (Rs 10.42 lakh). UK firm Ascension Flight offers space burials $1,044 (Rs 87,000). Meanwhile, Aura Flights offers the service at the cost of $3,707 (Rs 3,09 lakh).

Some experts also note that rise in space burials is part of a larger shift on how people handle the remains of loved ones. Kate Woodthorpe, a reader in sociology and director of the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath, noted in a BuzzFeed report that people are opting for more control even in death. And other experts such as Wake Forest University’s Tanya Marsh, who teaches the only course at a US law school on funeral and cemetery law, agrees.

“Baby boomers are insisting upon more control over their funeral and disposition so that their choices after death match their values in life,” Marsh wrote in a 2017 article for The Conversation. “And businesses are following suit, offering new ways to memorialise and dispose of the dead.”

The service has attracted high-profile clients including Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and American astronaut Gordon Cooper.

The founder of Celestis, Charles Chafer, himself hopes to have his ashes rocketed off the planet after he dies. In fact, Chafer said that he started space burials because he saw it as a way to give people a somewhat affordable way to participate and contribute to space exploration.

Are space burials legal?

Ferrying human remains into space is legal as of now. However, as the companies capable of such practices increase, some experts say the legislative framework and regulatory agencies overseeing payloads must also adapt, taking into account the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) role in the commercial space economy and the rights of indigenous people who regard the moon as a deity.

Leslie Tennen, a Phoenix-based attorney with a specialty in space law, was quoted as telling Wall Street Journal, “Right now these things are permissible. But does that mean they’re acceptable?”

What happens to the ashes?

However, with this option, many have the question of what happens to the ashes? Do they float in space? Or do they return back to Earth?

Experts and industry insiders state that most space burials are suborbital, meaning when ashes are released, they do not remain in orbit. Instead they rain back down on Earth kilometres from where they launched, carried by gravity and the wind.

On their website, Aura Flights explain that once the ashes are released into space, they join with the winds in the stratosphere. They travel around in these winds and eventually make it down to Earth’s surface either in the form of rain or snow. In the end, the ashes join with the mineral dust particles, water droplets, and ice crystals, that constitute cloud formation. Due to the nature of their dissemination, they fall back down to Earth in the form of tiny fragments, as opposed to a larger cluster.

UK firm Ascension Flights also notes that some amount of ashes will return to the planet. “As the particles eventually return to Earth, precipitation will form around them, creating raindrops and snowflakes,” its website claims. “‘Small amounts of nutritious chemicals will stimulate plant growth wherever it lands.”

Do ashes contribute to space junk?

The simple answer is no. As Aura Flights manager Samantha Richardson explained that the ashes are released well below the altitude at which satellites orbit, and all eventually fall back down to Earth. “There is no threat to orbiting satellites or bodies and we do not contribute to space junk ,” she said.

However, some space experts note that there’s a possibility some particles can escape upwards and into orbit. Space archaeologist Alice Gorman of Flinders University told ScienceAlert that if these ashes don’t return to Earth, they would join the millions of tiny bits of space junk which are travelling at speeds of 7-8 km per second. “Junk this size causes damage to spacecraft by constant bombardment. Each impact is trivial but there’s a cumulative effect. Fortunately, in Low Earth Orbit, this stuff usually enters the Earth’s atmosphere quickly,” she was quoted as saying.

All in all, space burials seem to becoming more popular but as young Dr Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy said in the Star Trek movie in 2009, “Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence.”

And do you really want to be buried there?

With inputs from agencies