‘Star Trek’ Cast Members Ashes Will Be Flown Into Space As Part Of Memorial Mission

The ashes of actors Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura) James Doohan (Scotty), Majel Barrett Roddenberry (Nurse Chapel), and the TV series creator Gene Roddenberry and visual-effects wiz Douglas Trumbull are headed into outer space.

The ashes and DNA from the iconic actors will be part of a special “Enterprise mission,” according to space and astronomy news site Universe Today.

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The samples will fly “beyond the moon” on the flight, which will take place at a future date to be determined.

United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur mission is planning to deliver a robotic lunar lander in order to scout for NASA’s future Artemis 1 flights. The “Enterprise mission” will be part of the “secondary payload” on that flight. The ashes are provided as part of a joint venture with Houston’s Celestis,  which conducts memorial space flights.

The first unmanned Artemis mission is scheduled for Aug. 29. It will be followed by Artemis 2, a flight that will circle the moon, and then Artemis 3, the first manned lunar landing in more than 50 years.

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