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Ashes of Doohan Sent Into Space

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the no-original-jokes-left dept.

Stephen Samuel writes "The CBC is reporting that Star Trek actor James Doohan ("Scotty") achieved his hopes of having his ashes launched into space when a package containing some of his ashes, ashes of Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper and about 200 other people were carried into sub-orbital space by a 6 meter (20') rocket. The rocket was launched by UP Aerospace from "Spaceport America", a commercial spaceport being developed in the southern New Mexico desert."

28 of 112 comments (clear)

  1. Don't beam me up. by romland · · Score: 2, Funny

    So "beam me up, Scotty" is now going to translate to "kicking the bucket", eh.

    1. Re:Don't beam me up. by Workaphobia · · Score: 4, Funny

      No, you're thinking of "Beam me up, God".

      --
      Evidently, the key to understanding recursion is to begin by understanding recursion. The rest is easy.
  2. Congrats, Scotty! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    You made it into space. If only briefly.

    >>the rocket soon parachuted back to Earth

    "Aye, Cap'n, I cannough change the lews of physics"

    Interestingly, Mr. Doohan was a huge fan of steam locomotives, far away from the high tech of Star Trek, donating his time to a museum, and acting as a locomotive engineer (ok, "driver" to some of you).

    tph

  3. NASA by DuncanE · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Hmmmm... I would of thought some of the peeps at NASA could of thought of a more individual gesture than that. I realise he's not a REAL spaceman, but surely everyone at the big N A S A can tie a bit of their personal motivation back to good old Scottie....

    Beam me up.

    1. Re:NASA by tinkertim · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Hmmmm... I would of thought some of the peeps at NASA could of thought of a more individual gesture than that. I realise he's not a REAL spaceman, but surely everyone at the big N A S A can tie a bit of their personal motivation back to good old Scottie....

      Discovery channel (last year) did a special on Vitamin Trek, how ST changed and helped shaped technology. If you look at the Ion Propulsion lab at NASA, it looks quite a bit like the engine room of the NCC 1701.

      He was of course an actor, but his acting was geek inspiring. I would have thought catapulting him to the sun or on a course likely to hit one of the gas giants would have been more fitting. I guess that costs money though :)

      So in memorium I'd just like to say :

      Up your shaft.

      (no, not flame bait, he said that on the Excelsior when the turbo lift talked to him)
  4. First Spock now Scotty by Zedrick · · Score: 4, Funny

    TFA doesn't say, but I presume it's aimed towards (planet) Genesis?

    1. Re:First Spock now Scotty by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      It is sort of disappointing. Only one ounce of the actor's ashes were aboard the rocket and the rocket only reached sub-orbital space (good for a rocket but not so cool for an individual's ashes being flown into space). Worse, it seems that everything came back with the rocket. So, really, what happened is one ounce of Doohan's ashes made a round-trip jaunt to sub-orbital space. They spent maybe a couple minutes there and now all of his ashes are back on Earth.

      There is no chance for a Spock/Genesis story with this one.

    2. Re:First Spock now Scotty by pclminion · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Worse, it seems that everything came back with the rocket. So, really, what happened is one ounce of Doohan's ashes made a round-trip jaunt to sub-orbital space. They spent maybe a couple minutes there and now all of his ashes are back on Earth.

      And your point is? We sure as hell HOPE that our astronauts COME BACK from their missions. He travelled high enough to earn a set of civilian Astronaut Wings. And like a real astronaut, he came back when he was done. I'm sure he'd be happy.

  5. Sub-orbital space? by owlstead · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If you've got a small rocket (6 meters), that has already failed once, it's better to put part of the remains of a person in it than trying to fit a live person into it. So from that point of view I can understand this experiment.

    But to shoot ashes into space, while knowing they will return anyway, and first viewing an unsucccessful launch (ugh), what's the point? Glad it worked this time, having to return a third time, only to do it all over again... that might have been hard for the relatives.

    1. Re:Sub-orbital space? by FlyByPC · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The problem is, they didn't have Scotty working on the engines. Had he been available to help, they'd have made orbit for sure -- and then some.

      I'm within a year of finishing up my Engineering Technology degree. I know for a fact that Doohan's "Scotty" had a lot to do with my interest in Engineering, even though I'm not a hardcore Trekkie. (I just think it's a good sci-fi TV show.)
      Here's to a job well done, Mr. Scott -- we miss you.

      --
      Paleotechnologist and connoisseur of pretty shiny things.
    2. Re:Sub-orbital space? by Rogerborg · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sure; if you want to fling corpses way up in the air and then have them land again, just use a trebuchet.

      --
      If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
    3. Re:Sub-orbital space? by ragefan · · Score: 2, Funny

      Maybe with enough extra velocity to pass the two Voyagers by the 23rd century. Maybe with enough extra velocity to pass the two V'gers by the 23rd century.

      There, I fixed that for you.

  6. Re:Great by a_nonamiss · · Score: 3, Informative
    Had you read the article, you'd know this was a sub-orbital flight. Nothing left in space.

    From TFA:

    Since it was a suborbital flight, the rocket soon parachuted back to Earth, coming down at the White Sands Missile Range. While technically a spaceflight, it was more or less a really high-altitude rocket.
    --
    -Arthur
    Cave ne ante ullas catapultas ambules
  7. Guidbye, Scotty by tverbeek · · Score: 4, Funny

    May your dilithium crystals be fully charged, your matter/anti-matter reaction balanced, your wee bairns well cared for, and the transport to your final shore leave free of malfunctions.

    Energise.

    --
    http://alternatives.rzero.com/
  8. Sub-orbital space? by niceone · · Score: 5, Funny

    Is sub-orbital space the not-so-final frontier? Is he boldly almost going?

    --
    ccalam - acoustic versions of new songs.
  9. they had trouble with the first launch by Coraon · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ironicly, the best person to fix this rocket would have been scotty.

    --
    -Ours is the wisdom of Solomon, the magic of Merlyn, the fall of Icaris.
  10. Fare thee well, Mr. Doohan by netwiz · · Score: 2, Funny

    Now all that remains is to put a pint of seawater on the moon with the appropriately inscribed air cylinder shipping label.

    /obscure, see if you can get it.

  11. James Doohan WW2 Vet by rvr · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I remember reading a bio of James Doohan when he died. My esteem went up for him greatly when I read that he was a WW2 vet. Born in Vancouver (woohoo!) and led a group of men at Juno beach on D-Day taking a few bullets in the process. The world seemed a little bit colder to me when I heard that he died. Fare thee well James.

    1. Re:James Doohan WW2 Vet by FlyingSquidStudios · · Score: 5, Informative

      Which cost him one of his fingers (and thankfully that's all). He tried to hide it as often as he could, but there are a few episodes of Star Trek where you can see his missing index finger in a shot or two. Also, unknown to most people, he provided the voices of a lot of the supporting and incidental characters in the animated Star Trek show. He always had a talent for voices.

      --
      http://twitter.com/OLDTELEGRAM
  12. Craziest pilot in the Canadian Air Forces by Tteddo · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Just read this at Wikipedia: "One of the many legendary stories of his flying years tells of Doohan slaloming a plane -- variously cited as a Hurricane or a jet trainer -- between mountainside telegraph poles to prove it could be done, which earned him a serious reprimand." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Doohan

  13. suborbital by PineGreen · · Score: 2, Informative

    It is suborbital, so the ashes will, eventually, fall back to earth. Their net energy is still negative.

  14. Obligatory Scotty Quote by SeaDour · · Score: 5, Funny

    SCOTT (to Waiter): "What in blazes is this?"

    WAITER (confused): "Didn't you order Scotch?"

    SCOTT: "Lad, I was drinking scotch about a hundred years before you were born and I can tell you that whatever this is, it is definitely not scotch."

    DATA (to Waiter): "I believe I may be of some assistance. Captain Scott is unaware of the existence of synthehol."

    SCOTT: "Synthehol?"

    DATA: "Yes. It is an alcohol substitute which is now normally served aboard starships. It simulates the appearance, smell, and taste of alcohol, but the intoxicating effects can be easily dismissed."

    SCOTT: "You're not quite... human are you?"

    DATA: "No, sir. I am an android. My name is Commander Data."

    SCOTT: "Synthetic scotch and synthetic commanders..."

    DATA: "I believe Guinan does keep a limited supply of non-syntheholic products. Perhaps one of them would be to your liking."

    Data bends down and reaches under the bar... then stands up and puts a very old bottle of a green liquid on the bar.

    SCOTT: "What is it?"

    DATA: "It is..." (tries to inspect the label) "It is..." (takes a sniff of it) "...it is green."

    1. Re:Obligatory Scotty Quote by ptbarnett · · Score: 3, Informative
      Relics, TNG episode 130.

      As noted in this episode description, "It is green" was a reference to nearly the same line spoken by Scotty in By Any Other Name, TOS, episode 51.

    2. Re:Obligatory Scotty Quote by mmdog · · Score: 3, Informative

      Scotty used the "It's green" line in TOS episode 51: By Any Other Name. He was trying to bring out the 'humanity' in the aliens who had hijacked the enterprise by getting the guy loaded.

      --
      Politicians are like diapers - they should be changed frequently and for the same reasons.
  15. well... by The+Orange+Mage · · Score: 2, Funny

    He's dead, Jim.

  16. Wow, what are the odds...? by Slur · · Score: 2, Funny

    Scotty and Captain Pike launched in the same week!

    --
    -- thinkyhead software and media
  17. Re:Bollocks by NeverVotedBush · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Wow, I'm sure that if he was alive, he would discount you as the angry and ineffectual waste of space that you are.

  18. Makes me think by Boyceterous · · Score: 4, Funny

    of what I would want done with my ashes. Doohan had a lover for outer space. I want my ashes shot into a woman. If there was any DNA left, I guess they could name the kid "Ashley"