Steve Munt's love for his cat it is as big as it has for space. If you thought that Doraemon was the best-known cosmic cat on earth, wait until you know the story of Pikachu, a cat who passed away due to diabetic complications and who will soon take a trip to space thanks to his owner.
A tall tribute
After suffering serious complications caused by the diabetes he suffered, Pikachu he lost his battle last January at Dove Lewis Animal Hospital. His owner did everything she could to give him the best life, so now that he can't do any more, he wants to send him off big time. And for this he has thought to send it to Earth orbit where he will "watch over and shower the world with his love."
If it does, it will be first cremated cat to reach Earth orbit. This will be possible thanks to the company Celestial, a company that offers space tribute services to both animals and humans. The method is as simple as including secondary payload in regular satellite launches, which is planned to be done with Pikachu's ashes sometime in the next 18 months.
According to the company, the launch capsule with the ashes will reach Earth's orbit, fall by gravity, and enter the atmosphere at full speed until vaporize completely as if it were a shooting star. The curious thing about Celestis' work is that they offer different services depending on the distance to be reached:
- earth rise: This service is responsible for taking the capsule to zero gravity and returns it to Earth safely. The capsule is returned with an official certificate and can be kept as property. It costs $2.495.
- Earth orbit: It is the service that they have contracted for Pikachu. It costs $4.995
- Moon: As you can imagine, this service takes the capsule to the Moon. In 1.999 the remains of Dr. Eugene Shoemaker were taken aboard the Lunar Prospector mission from NASA. It is priced at $12.500.
- Traveler: The most premium Celestis pack consists of a permanent celestial journey that leaves behind the Earth-Moon system in search of the deepest space. It costs $12.500.
A launch that seeks financing
Although Munt assures that he already has Celestis's ticket to take Pikachu's ashes into space, he has created a petition for funding on GoFundme to encourage those who want to join the cause and allow them to save the expenses of the tribute. Munt is an old acquaintance on Gofundme for organizing other funding for other of his cats, so he'll probably get a few donations.