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NASA's New Horizons To Arrive At Pluto With Clyde Tombaugh's Ashes

Posted by timothy on from the economy-rate dept.

hypnosec writes NASA's New Horizons is bringing with it the ashes of Clyde Tombaugh – its discoverer – as it cruises towards the now dwarf-planet or 'plutoid'. The probe will be close enough on January 15 to start observing Pluto. Clyde Tombaugh discovered the ice and rock-laden Pluto in 1930 and one of his final requests was that his ashes be sent into space. Tombaugh died on January 17, 1997. Fulfilling that wish NASA has fitted the upper deck of New Horizons probe with a small container containing Tombaugh's ashes alongside a total of 7 scientific instruments. "Interned herein are remains of American Clyde W. Tombaugh, discoverer of Pluto and the solar system's 'third zone'", reads the inscription on the container.

66 of 108 comments (clear)

  1. It's a first... by TWX · · Score: 1

    Makes me wonder if any other astronomers or other scientists to discover celestial objects will have their ashes sent in homage...

    --
    Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    1. Re:It's a first... by mbone · · Score: 5, Informative

      Lunar Prospector carried Gene Shoemaker's ashes to the Moon, and was "deliberately targeted to impact in a permanently shadowed area of the Shoemaker crater near the lunar south pole." Now, they did that for science reasons, but it was still a very fitting end (they could have chosen another crater, of course).

    2. Re:It's a first... by PhrostyMcByte · · Score: 2

      Makes me wonder if any other astronomers or other scientists to discover celestial objects will have their ashes sent in homage...

      It's a romantic notion, but strikes me as not really in the spirit of science. If I knew someone was going to explore this awesome thing I discovered, I would much rather have them use every bit of available weight to further that discovery.

    3. Re:It's a first... by grep+-v+'.*'+* · · Score: 2

      I did not know that -- it's very sweet; good for them.

      Now, I do have an off-topic question: When God finally arrives and brings back everyone from the dead:

      a) Does that also include cremations? (Probably so -- just add water.) Dismemberment? (Super Glue.)
      b) Will He do it more than once? I can just see Gene waking up in the shadow of the moon, and then immediately expiring because of the non-existent atmosphere and cold. So is this a one-time thing, or does God hit Ctrl-Alt-Del repeatedly until it finally works?
      c) God brings back to Earth all of the travelers that have managed to escape Earths' gravity. (Sounds kinda like a shepherd -- "That's not your yard, get back over here. Stupid sheep.")
      d) God doesn't bother. "You really want to leave? Have at it." (Wonder if any lawyers will take it up with Him since their potential clients are missing out.)
      e) Does that also include video-game characters? NetHack, Mario, Gordon Freeman, etc? (What about PacMan and GLaDOS?) And what about Sweetie?

      Enquiring minds want to know

      --
      If the universe is someone's simulation -- does that mean the stars are just stuck pixels?
    4. Re:It's a first... by Gavagai80 · · Score: 1

      A few ounces of ash isn't going to be replaced by a useful science instrument. If they sent up people's entire remains it'd be a different story.

      --
      This space intentionally left blank
    5. Re:It's a first... by Kittenman · · Score: 1

      I saw a BBC show once about how the English treat their dead. They were running out of room in the Victorian times, and started cremations. The clincher was WW1, when the troops were being blown to smithereens with artillery and there wasn't enough of them to be resurrected, whether you're the deity or not.

      --
      "The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes" - Winston Churchill
    6. Re:It's a first... by clovis · · Score: 1

      A few ounces of ash isn't going to be replaced by a useful science instrument. If they sent up people's entire remains it'd be a different story.

      A whole corpse? That would be awesome, especially when some alien culture opens up the probe and realizes what it is.

      Alien Corporal realizes what he's looking at: WTF! WTF! It's some dead guy!
      Alien Sarge: A corpse? Is this some kind of joke? Why would they do that? Find the Captain and tell him.
      Alien Captain: I bet it's a threat. They're saying this is what they'll do to us.
      Alien Captain: We need to hit them first and hit them hard.
      Alien Captain: Unlock the weapons cabinets, and make sure every man has his sword and shield.

    7. Re:It's a first... by coofercat · · Score: 1

      ...and when the probe sent in my name crashes into said object (deliberately, or due to decaying orbit), I'd prefer that the object in question was contaminated by it as little as possible such that any future missions could look at it in it's original form.

    8. Re:It's a first... by FatLittleMonkey · · Score: 1

      Sword and shield?

      I'm not sure they're going to be much of a threat to us.

      --
      Science is all about firing a drunk pig out of a cannon just to see what happens.
  2. Not all of his ashes.. by VMaN · · Score: 4, Informative

    Just a small portion of his ashes. Postage to the Kupier belt is still pretty expensive.

    1. Re: Not all of his ashes.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Yes I'm sure they had to make everything significantly larger to accommodate 7 grams of ashes... The plaque would be affixed to the outside requiring no accommodation. Yes it adds a tiny bit of weight but nothing significant enough to complain about its cost. Jesus dude you must be a joy to be around...you sound like the type of person that whines about absolutely everything.

    2. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by itzly · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Or, when the design was done, they had some room left over, and they couldn't find a 7-gram scientific instrument.

    3. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by CanEHdian · · Score: 4, Insightful

      And still a tremendous waste of money to placard those who fund NASA for emotional reasons, not scientific reasons.

      What do you think is going to do more for NASA? The discovery/proof that Mars once was a planet with liquid water and perhaps even microbial life (which is HUGE from a scientific perspective), or two Good Ole American Boys planting the Stars & Stripes on the surface of the red planet, broadcast "live" on all major TV networks in the US and around the world? It is all about emotion: enthousiasm, national pride, and conquering that Final Frontier and leading the way. That's how it worked with Apollo.

      --
      When the copyright term is "forever minus a day", live every day like it's the last.
    4. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by willworkforbeer · · Score: 2

      As a taxpayer-funded organization, they also must consider unique ways to gain publicity with the general public. If their PR folks are sharp, they'll use this to NASA's advantage and get a million dollars in both digital and liquid ink. The general public can relate to the emotionality of wanting your remains to reach out a bazillion miles.

      --
      Pretending this is my office full of bitter coworkers..
    5. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by itzly · · Score: 2

      I don't know what's going to do more for NASA, but I would love that microbial life. Don't care for the two men with the flag.

    6. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by thrich81 · · Score: 2

      Except that interplanetary missions and NASA in general are not ALL about science. I would even venture a guess that much of the support for NASA's interplanetary programs among the American public (the people paying for it) is based on a romantic vision of "exploration", not hard science. Little add-ons like this, and the on-board DVD's with thousands of people's signatures, don't cost much and add a lot to public support. Unless the planetary scientists are going to fund these missions by themselves they had better be sensitive to their other perceived values beyond the science published in journals read by 0.01% of the American public.

    7. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by thrich81 · · Score: 1

      OK, I was harsh on the unnamed "planetary scientists" and the ones I know are not like that so should have been less direct in my implied accusation. Sorry about that.

    8. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by R3d+M3rcury · · Score: 1

      We can't have both?

    9. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 4, Interesting

      they also must consider unique ways to gain publicity with the general public.

      In my daughter's 4th grade class, they have a chart of the solar system, and they are tracking the progress of New Horizons as a class project. The ashes are one of the things the kids are most fascinated by. The science is helped along by some human interest. If it leads to just one or two additional kids pursuing careers in science or engineering, then this was a good investment of seven grams of payload.

      It is nice to see some esteem and recognition going to a scientist, rather than some politician.

    10. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by arth1 · · Score: 1

      We can't have both?

      Republicans

    11. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by mbone · · Score: 3, Interesting

      That weight would have gone to Pluto anyway; the ashes (plus the coin) were used as counterweights, for trim.

    12. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      " Kids are indoctrinated with magical thinking, "

      Yeah, it's called sci-fi. These kids grow up into full-fledged Space Nutters who think they'll live on Mars and colonize the universe. Given what we know, that's magical thinking too.

    13. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by johncandale · · Score: 1

      but if someone did in the far future, they would have to conclude that 21st century humans believed in magic. Sad, but that at least would be valuable information.

      Which is 100% true.

    14. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by fufufang · · Score: 1

      And still a tremendous waste of money to placard those who fund NASA for emotional reasons, not scientific reasons.

      What do you think is going to do more for NASA? The discovery/proof that Mars once was a planet with liquid water and perhaps even microbial life (which is HUGE from a scientific perspective), or two Good Ole American Boys planting the Stars & Stripes on the surface of the red planet, broadcast "live" on all major TV networks in the US and around the world? It is all about emotion: enthousiasm, national pride, and conquering that Final Frontier and leading the way. That's how it worked with Apollo.

      Not to mention that they probably needed something to balance the probe anyway -- might as well use someone's ashes for symbolic purposes.

    15. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      We are apes. Live with it.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
    16. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by itsdapead · · Score: 1

      And still a tremendous waste of money to placard those who fund NASA for emotional reasons, not scientific reasons

      Show me evidence that some valuable scientific experiment was bumped from the mission to accommodate this weight, or that a significant sum of much-needed money was diverted from elsewhere, and I'll agree with you.

      Meanwhile, I Am Not A Rocket Scientist, but it seems like a no-brainer that you don't design a half-tonne space probe without holding a few grammes of capacity in reserve for contingencies. Something like the ashes could have been bumped at the very last minute with out consequence if the probe weighed in 0.01% over weight.

      but if someone did in the far future, they would have to conclude that 21st century humans believed in magic.

      No, just that they had emotions and honoured their dead. In fact, you're feeding a Sky Fairy cult strawman (or rather straw Vulcan - see points #4 and #5).

      --
      In a survey of 100 programmers, 111111 thought that duck-typing was a good idea.
    17. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Why would it need to be balanced?

      Spin stabilized spacecraft need an axisymmetric balance, otherwise their spin will precess and change speed, especially when changing position relative to the Sun and planets.

      It would likely be better if probes are quite unbalanced, and as a result the gravity drag from the Sun would help keep it pointed in the right direction without risking rotation nor having to run gyroscopes unnecessarily.

      No, it would precess, requiring active stabilization using up fuel, defeating the purpose of being spin stabilized for the cruise phase of the mission. The spinning won't be perfect and some attitude control is always needed especially if anything mechanically on the craft moves, but the difference between a carefully balanced craft and one not adds up to a lot of fuel on a long mission.

      This is religious symbolism, not science. ... Which, thanks to good Mr. Jefferson, should not take place on public money.

      There is a lot of symbolism endorsed by the US government, including ones Thomas Jefferson was quite aware of and supported. Not all symbolism is religious, even if historically it had some connections to religion, as are traditions not necessarily religious. Maybe you should be more careful with trying to trumpet definitions of scientific vs. non-scientific, and religious vs. not, if you can't even handle basic mechanics from physics...

    18. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by cusco · · Score: 1

      If it were up to just the Republicans we wouldn't have either, just a half-funded project that was cancelled as soon as the hardware contractors made their money.

      --
      "Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
    19. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by itsdapead · · Score: 1

      but honouring individuals who don't exist anymore and are never coming back, including parts of their dead bodies?

      Hell, personally, I'd have settled with just a plaque, but if a few grams of ash has more emotional value with some people, why not? I certainly don't agree when people risk their lives to recover dead bodies, or waste valuable real estate on graveyards, but this is harmless. Plus, the inscription was purely factual.

      I cannot see any reason for this other than a religious superstition that there is something after death.

      There is something after death: the lives of everybody who didn't die that day, and their descendants. The possibility that what you did in your life might have a positive impact on your survivors, that they might even remember you or your work, is the real life after death.

      --
      In a survey of 100 programmers, 111111 thought that duck-typing was a good idea.
    20. Re:Not all of his ashes.. by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Hell, personally, I'd have settled with just a plaque, but if a few grams of ash has more emotional value with some people, why not?

      Because it's an endorsement of superstition, and sets precedents.

      There is something after death: the lives of everybody who didn't die that day, and their descendants. The possibility that what you did in your life might have a positive impact on your survivors, that they might even remember you or your work, is the real life after death.

      I partially agree. A positive impact on the future we don't get to see is a reason to live our lives well. Along with sowing our oats. But remembering me? I'd rather they spent the time on pursuing worthwhile endeavors, because no matter what people think of me, I won't know it, and it won't make a grain of difference.
      Some cultures have a taboo against speaking of the dead, and I can't say I've read anything about that causing problems.

  3. Just a flyby... by mbone · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Clyde Tombaugh will really be interred in interstellar space, as New Horizons has no means of scattering his ashes on Pluto.

    1. Re:Just a flyby... by Waffle+Iron · · Score: 4, Funny

      ... unless they've made a slight math error in their navigation computations.

    2. Re:Just a flyby... by linebackn · · Score: 2

      So now he gets to watch the whole thing stuffed between a couple of robotic instruments...

      "it just dawned on me how weird this movie is"

    3. Re:Just a flyby... by mbone · · Score: 2

      It would be more than slight :)

      On the other hand, if there are any unknown tiny moons of Pluto, he might get interred on one of those.

    4. Re:Just a flyby... by cthulhu11 · · Score: 1

      This does seem like a small but nontrivial risk. Aside from Charon there are four rocks we can see from here -- who knows else lurks? I should think that the mission team will be taking a long hard squint at every image they can slurp down along the way looking for new dangers, so that the trajectory can be adjusted in time.

  4. Discoverer? by Donwulff · · Score: 1

    Clyde Tombaugh discovered NASA? Outstanding, I've been wondering where they disappeared for a long time!

    1. Re:Discoverer? by NotInHere · · Score: 1

      Watch interstellar. Its future however.

    2. Re:Discoverer? by iggymanz · · Score: 2

      he clearly discovered New Horizon by that first sentence, work on your reading comprehension. Hopefully whomever built it is not offended by NASA's comandeering of it for a Pluto mission

    3. Re:Discoverer? by CanEHdian · · Score: 1

      I read it that Clyde Tombaugh discovered Clyde Tombaugh!

      --
      When the copyright term is "forever minus a day", live every day like it's the last.
    4. Re:Discoverer? by cascadingstylesheet · · Score: 1

      he clearly discovered New Horizon by that first sentence, work on your reading comprehension. Hopefully whomever built it is not offended by NASA's comandeering of it for a Pluto mission

      Apparently he discovered tortured grammar.

      We, of course, already know where to look ...

    5. Re:Discoverer? by iggymanz · · Score: 1

      Or Tombaugh was a genderless non-human entity before assuming maleness as a disembodied spirit making a request over his pile of ashes. yes, I think we have it right now

  5. Re:frosty horizon ash winter by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. - Nietzsche
    Nietzsche is dead. Nietzsche remains dead. And I have killed him. - God

  6. Artifacts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Yeah that's going to confuse the hell out of some alien archeologist 20,000 years from now.

  7. Why "American"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Same thing with Interstellar. Can't we get over the petty nationalism and explore space as Humans?

    1. Re:Why "American"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      It's more concise than "funding for NASA was provided by the taxpayers of the United States of America".

  8. Not Yet Better than Hubble by mbone · · Score: 4, Informative

    New Horizons will start imaging (and optical navigation) this month, but it won't be better than Hubble until mid-May. That's when the fun will really start.

  9. And by justthinkit · · Score: 1

    And would they have sent his ashes if Pluto had been demoted already?

    --
    I come here for the love
    1. Re:And by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      They would have added a note saying 'oh, and by the way, sorry about demoting your "planet" '.

      Or 'Have fun touring your "planet", wink wink'.

    2. Re:And by S.O.B. · · Score: 1

      Regardless of how it is classified he still discovered it. So I'm guessing yes, they still would have sent his ashes.

      --
      Some of what I say is fact, some is conjecture, the rest I'm just blowing out my ass...you guess.
    3. Re:And by crunchygranola · · Score: 4, Informative

      And would they have sent his ashes if Pluto had been demoted already?

      You are confused. Pluto was not "demoted". It in its old (inaccurate) classification it was the smallest and last planet to be discovered, a Johnny-Come-Lately.

      What Tombaugh really did was discover the first of a whole new class of objects - the Kuiper Belt Objects that extend far past the planets. And Pluto is its king - it is the largest and most prominent of all the KBOs (Eris, is queen, having the exact same diameter as far as we can tell, but is more distant and dimmer).

      Discovering a whole new class of objects beats discovering yet another planet.

      --
      Second class citizen of the New Gilded Age
    4. Re:And by ihtoit · · Score: 2

      not quite... Eris is slightly larger (by 30-40km) and 27% more massive than Pluto. (citation: W. M. Keck Observatory)

      --
      Political debates have me rolling my eyes so much I think I got optical whiplash. I should sue. - Foamy The Squirrel
    5. Re:And by ihtoit · · Score: 1

      to clarify: Eris is not a KBO, it is a TNO and a member of the Scattered Disc group.

      --
      Political debates have me rolling my eyes so much I think I got optical whiplash. I should sue. - Foamy The Squirrel
  10. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by michelcolman · · Score: 2

    Imagine what aliens would think if they found the probe. They put what in there? Seriously? Ashes from some dead guy? Instead of an extra instrument, or a bigger battery? What for?

    Humans are weird creatures.

  11. Sounds like a movie plot by SpankiMonki · · Score: 2

    for the Plutoidite remake of "The Gods Must be Crazy".

  12. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by crunchygranola · · Score: 2

    ... It's as scientific as taking another picture of the bottom of the ocean.

    "Yup, it's sand."

    Who cares?

    Says the AC who does not know the Abyssal Plain is covered with clay not sand! Your knowledge of the ocean evidently begins and ends with a day at the beach.

    You make a good Exhibit A why scientific study of the Universe is necessary.

    --
    Second class citizen of the New Gilded Age
  13. Wished there was room.... by Lumpy · · Score: 1

    For a spring ejector to allow them to fling his ashes int a trajectory that would allow them to impact on the planet.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    1. Re:Wished there was room.... by Tablizer · · Score: 2

      NH is whizzing by Pluto pretty quickly. I doubt a small mechanical device would be enough to fling a small canister to crash land on Pluto.

      Unless, perhaps the flinging is done several weeks before the Pluto encounter such that the canister splits off from NH's trajectory and simply smashes into Pluto face on. But its velocity would have to be spot-on because Pluto's gravity isn't going to make the target much bigger at the probe's encounter speed (which would be similar to the canister's). Adjustment propellants and a guidance system would probably be in order.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
  14. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    It would be funny if they start deducing our culture, religion and other shit by this singular finding. Just like we often do with stuff we find from ancient cultures. We'd be a culture of creatures who barely conquered space (because our technology would probably appear rather crude to a species advanced enough to collect that probe) but we send the ashes of our deceased up, along with our science instruments. Probably some superstition cult. Maybe a human sacrifice to appease the Gods of Space? Or some powerful leader whose ashes have to be brought back to the heavenly source that he came from, down to us mortals and now we're seding him back to his birth place, according to the religion we'd (presumably) have.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  15. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by Opportunist · · Score: 2

    Do we have to wait for them to die of natural reasons?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  16. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by r1348 · · Score: 1

    First we would have to select and incinerate 7 of them...

  17. METRIC! Oh shit! 3,000 km by raymorris · · Score: 1

    Of the error were using imperial units rather than metric ...

    Seriously, though, I understand they are considering / did consider getting within 3,000km of Pluto. If that course correction is made a million km out, 3,000km is just 0.3% error.

  18. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by sjames · · Score: 1

    And then you are surprised to learn: It's not sand!

  19. Names Too by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    There's also a CD with the names of everyone who submitted their name on NASA's website shortly before the launch. My daughter's name is on it.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  20. The Farthest Man From Home by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    He is the Farthest Man From Home

  21. Re:frosty horizon ash winter by Muad'Dave · · Score: 1

    Life is a "Grand Illusion" -- Styx, 1977

    --
    Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
  22. Re:If this gathers more press than the science... by timothy · · Score: 1

    Hey, that seems a fine way to finance space exploration -- why not? No need to replace -- just supplement. I like voluntary taxation; if the celebrities sign up in advance, it would be great for them to get naming rights, too. Imagine The Yellow Submarine, with the eventual remains (or portion thereof) of Paul McCartney, say.

    No contradiction, though -- commercial purpose is a great way to get some pure science.

    --
    jrnl: http://tinyurl.com/c2l8yr / foes: http://tinyurl.com/ckjno5