ASHES TO ASHES
Inside bonkers British firm Aura Flights that will scatter your ashes in SPACE – and even film your final journey in HD
YOU'LL probably never make it to space in your lifetime – but what about after death?
One kooky British firm offers you the chance to literally reach the heavens by scattering your ashes 20 miles above the surface of the Earth.
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Run by a pair of self-proclaimed "garden shed scientists", Sheffield firm (now known as Aura Flights) charges up to £3,000 to strap your remains onto a modified weather balloon.
It floats high above the clouds before the payload is released in space.
Your ashes then circle the planet before ultimately returning as raindrops or snowflakes, according to co-founder and director Dr Chris Rose.
He says the space sendoffs are about giving families a unique way to say their final farewell.
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"It's a fitting tribute to those of us who have lived in the space age," Chris told The Sun.
"Essentially, we're all made of stardust. Returning to the stars is a completion of the loop."
Chris, 33, set up Ascension Flights with fellow space fanatic Dr Alex Baker after they met at Sheffield University.
It's part of an odd new trend in funerary services that has punters going extraterrestrial with their loved ones' remains.
In 2018, US company Elysium Flights launched a gram each of 100 people's ashes beyond orbit on a SpaceX rocket. After the capsule was ejected, families and friends could track the remains until they eventually burned up in the atmosphere.
But why would someone want to fire their nearest and dearest to the final frontier?
"When it comes to figuring out what to do with someone's ashes, people are often in a bit of a quandary," Chris explains.
"Maybe the deceased didn't leave a request on where to spread them, or the location they had in mind is no longer available.
Bonkers British firm Ascension Flights scatters your ashes in SPACE
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"Space burials aren't location specific, so we can essentially launch and scatter your loved ones onto the Earth. We've solved a lot of stress for people looking for that perfect spot."
Chris and Alex cooked up the idea for Ascension Flights a few years ago and took it all the way to Dragon's Den in 2017 – though they turned down a lucrative offer from Deborah Meadon.
Launches began in 2018, and 50 people have been sent up so far, with another 25 flights lined up this year.
Cosmic scatterings start at £895 for the basic package, stretching to £3,000 for more elaborate launches and locations.
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One customer, 48-year-old Thomas Cook pilot Mike Goodfellow, sent the ashes of dad Les up with Ascension Flights last year.
Les was also a commercial pilot, and even served in the RAF's Typhoon squadron in World War 2. Mike says the sendoff was a fitting tribute to their joint passion.
"This isn’t the sort of thing you do every day - send someone into space," Mike told The Sun. "Some people will never make it up there."
"Now when I fly at 40,000 feet I sit there and look into the blue sky and realise he’s up there with me. It's comforting."
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Ascension flights uses launch sites in Sheffield, Derbyshire and Wrexham in North Wales.
Ashes are first decanted into a canister designed from the ground up by the Ascension Flights team.
It's dangled under a modified weather balloon that's filled with helium and released to the stratosphere.
As the pressure drops, the balloon expands about 15 metres. "If it was sat in Wembley stadium, it would touch the stands on both sides," Chris says.
Just before it bursts, the ashes are scattered and carried around the world for days or weeks on stratospheric winds.
A built-in parachute and GSP system ensure the capsule makes it back to Earth safely before it's retrieved by the team.
Ascension Flights offers a certificate and glass of bubbly when the deed is done, and thanks to cameras hooked to the scattering system can even hand bereaved families an HD video of the trip.
"The part we play is much more a celebration than a sombre moment," says co-founder Alex, 34.
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"People tend to have dealt with the death to some degree already. We're part of honouring that person's life."
It might feel a little odd to think that people's ashes are raining down on you from space.
Chris admits the idea is "strange and uncomfortable", but says there's no reason to be concerned.
"They’re natural, sterile and not a body any more," he says. "But people do find it a bit funny."
The pair hope to expand their 15-strong team to help them send up 200 flights in 2020.
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They've even got plans to offer space burials for pets in the near future.
For grieving punters like Mike, the service offers a final farewell unlike any other.
"The last I saw of my dad was him ascending into the blue sky," Mike told The Sun. "I watched the balloon float away until I couldn't see it any more."
"It's nice to know I can always look at a clear sky and think of him."
Note: An earlier version of this story listed the company as Ascension Flights. As of November 2019 Ascension Flights has been renamed Aura Flights.
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