A Space Burial Mission Goes Awry

A German space company is trying to figure out what went wrong with a mission that was supposed to bring back the ashes of 166 people from space. The Nyx capsule, part of the "Nyx Mission Possible, " was on its way back to Earth after orbiting the planet twice in late June. But something unexpected happened, and the capsule was lost during re-entry. The company, based in Bavaria, posted on LinkedIn that they had briefly reconnected with the capsule after a communication blackout caused by the intense heat of re-entry. However, they lost contact again at an altitude of 26 km, just before the parachutes were supposed to open. TEC has set up an independent team to look into what happened. They plan to share the findings with the families, investors, and their own teams. Earlier, they had apologized to the families who trusted them with their loved ones' ashes. This mission was special because it was the first time a company tried to bring back ashes from space. The CEO of the company that hired TEC, Charles Chafer, said they don't think they can recover the capsule. He expressed his disappointment and gratitude to the families. Besides the ashes, the capsule was also carrying cannabis plants and seeds for a science project to study if cannabis can grow on Mars. In 2024, the same company sent the remains of some "Star Trek" series creators and actors into space.