Would you send your ashes to space for $249? Here’s how

Affordable space memorials take orbit (Representative image)

Space Beyond, a start-up founded by Ryan Mitchell, is aiming to transform memorial services by taking them beyond Earth. The company has unveiled an “Ashes to Space” programme that will send the cremated remains of up to 1,000 people into orbit in a single mission, offering the service at a relatively low cost of $249 per person.

Rather than charging premium prices like earlier space memorial ventures, Space Beyond is relying on a ride-share model to keep costs down. The company plans to integrate a small CubeSat into a larger spacecraft, dramatically reducing launch expenses. Its first mission is scheduled for October 2027 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare flight, under an agreement with Arrow Science & Technology.

Each participant’s memorial will involve about one gram of ashes, a limit set to balance capacity and strict weight requirements imposed by launch providers such as SpaceX. Once deployed, the CubeSat will orbit Earth for roughly five years before eventually burning up during re-entry, marking what the company describes as a symbolic and natural conclusion to the memorial journey.

Space Beyond has stressed that it will not release ashes directly into space, citing concerns that dispersing particles could create debris hazardous to other spacecraft. Families remain free to decide how to handle the remaining ashes of their loved ones. The CubeSat will be placed in a sun-synchronous orbit, allowing it to pass over every region of the planet, and customers will be able to track its path as it circles the Earth.