Spend eternity orbiting Mars for as little as $25,000

Dubai: An American company known for memorialising the deceased through spaceflight has opened reservations for its most ambitious mission yet: placing human remains and DNA samples into orbit around Mars, local media reported.

Celestis, a Texas-based firm founded in 1997, announced that bookings are now available for Mars300, a memorial spaceflight scheduled for no earlier than 2030. 

The price for participation is $24,995 (Dh91,806) per person, with a 10 per cent deposit securing a slot. 

The company noted that capacity remains limited, and that all funds will be held in a dedicated, insured escrow account until the launch provider and mission details are formally confirmed.

Celestis has previously flown ashes of humans and pets into Earth orbit, including tributes to cultural figures such as cast members from Star Trek and scientists from the aerospace field. 

But Mars300 represents a leap far beyond its earlier projects: it would mark the first attempt to place human remains around another planet.

The mission is expected to fly as a secondary payload aboard a future cargo spacecraft bound for Mars.

While launch partners have yet to be finalised, Celestis said SpaceX’s Starship currently stands as the only viable option capable of supporting the mission’s requirements. 

A firm launch date will depend on technical readiness and financial and logistical preparations.

Charles Chafer, the company’s chief executive, described the initiative as “The next step in humanity’s journey to the stars,” combining science, symbolism, and deep-space exploration.

Despite the commemorative nature of the mission, it has prompted scientific debate. 

Any spacecraft carrying human biological material must comply with strict COSPAR planetary protection protocols designed to prevent microbial contamination of celestial bodies, a requirement that will heavily shape the mission’s engineering and approval process.