A STAR Trek tribute mission is set to launch on the first flight of the Vulcan Centaur rocket, the ULA announced this week.
The Vulcan (also the name of a extraterrestrial species on Star Trek) is the newest rocket from the United Launch Alliance (or ULA).
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The mission is being carried out by ULA in partnership with Celestis, a company that provides space memorial services.
This first Vulcan mission is designated “Enterprise,” to honor the famous Trek starships.
The rocket will also carry 150 capsules containing the cremains (or DNA) of Trek or space fans including that of the series’ creator, Gene Roddenberry.
“We’re very pleased to be fulfilling, with this mission, a promise I made to [actor] Majel Barrett Roddenberry in 1997 that one day we would fly her and husband/Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry together on a deep space memorial spaceflight,” Charles Chafer, Celestis CEO and co-founder, said in a statement.
Celestis has launched Gene Roddenberry’s ashes to space before on an Orbital Sciences rocket in 1997.
ULA president and CEO Tory Bruno called the mission a “fitting tribute to the Roddenberry family and the Star Trek fans to be a part of the maiden flight of Vulcan.”
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However, Vulcan isn’t just heading to space to launch “Star Trek” content, it is also carrying Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander.
The rocket will first deploy Peregine on a trajectory to the moon and then go to deep space with the memorial payload.
Once in deep space, the Vulcan is expected to enter a stable orbit around the sun.
The rocket is expected to launch sometime in the latter half of 2022, however, the exact timeline is unclear at this time.
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