The Strangest Things That Have Ever Been Sent To Space

1. A haunted doll

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One of the strangest things that has ever been sent to space, is a haunted doll named Lorraine Warren. The doll had dumbfounded paranormal experts after being involved in numerous cases of high-profile supernatural incidents. Experts wanted to test the paranormal activity in the realms of space.

2. A garden gnome

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In 2011 a garden gnome was launched into space. The gnome named 'Kern' was an endeavor by the European Space Agency (ESA) as a part of an outreach to get more students involved in science and space. He became the 2011 ambassador for space, showing that exploration was fun.

3. A chicken embryo

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In 1996 a chicken embryo was sent to space, becoming one of the strangest objects in space without a doubt. The purpose of this mission was to study how an embryo would develop in microgravity. The chicken embryo was sent on the Space Shuttle Endeavour.

4. Pizza

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In 2001, Pizza Hut added to the strange collection of human entities gathering in space. This time it was a pizza that was being delivered to the International Space Station in a very extravagant promotional stunt to garner even more custom from their novel advertisement.

5. Luke Skywalker's Lightsaber

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Luke Skywalker and his lightsaber are emblems of fictional space. So in 2007, the world was crossed when Luke Skywalker's lightsaber (a replica of the original) was sent to space in the Space Shuttle Discovery, finally taking the iconic symbol to real-life space.

6. A golf ball

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There was a very famous moment in 1971 when Alan Shepard hit a golf ball on the moon. This happened during the Apollo 14 mission, a hugely important historical moment for space discovery. So a golf ball was one of the very first strange objects in space.

7. Buzz Lightyear

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Educational Outreach programs have gone to extreme lengths to promote space and scientific discovery as fun educational options for students to pursue. In 2008, Buzz Lightyear was sent to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the NASA outreach scheme.

8. A baby tortoise

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Of all the things you do not expect in space, a baby tortoise would surely be high on the list. However, there were studies that wanted to research the effect that microgravity had on reptiles. And so in 2021, a baby tortoise named Gamera was sent to space as part of an experiment.

9. A LEGO mini figure

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Andreas Mogensen was the first Danish astronaut to go to space. To mark such a momentous occasion he decided to take an object to mark it. He took a LEGO minifigure of himself, dressed in the same outfit he was wearing and displaying the Danish flag!

10. A Gorilla suit

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Anousheh Ansari boarded the ISS in 2006 wearing a gorilla suit on board. She did it for the amusement of her grandchildren. However, the gorilla suit then became one of many earthly oddities in space. The pictures of a floating gorilla in space became quite iconic.

11. The hair of multiple presidents

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The hair samples of the former US presidents, John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, George Washington, and Ronald Reagan were sent to space as a tribute to their legacies. The hair samples/ DNA were held in controlled environments before the memorial space flight!

12. A disco ball

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A huge disco/mirror ball named The Humanity Star was launched into space by Rocket Lab, a private aerospace company in 208. It was meant to serve as a symbol of unity for humanity. It would be visible even from Earth, or so that was the intention. While it did work for around 2 months, it ended up being displaced.

13. A copy of the Mona Lisa

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Of all the weird and wonderful objects to be sent to space, the Mona Lisa (a copy rather than the original) was sent up to space too. It was a micro-engraved copy that went to the moon on the Beresheet Lander in 2019! It was amongst other objects. with the intention of creating a capsule of Earth's culture.

14. A bagpipe

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American astronaut Kjell Lindgren took a set of bagpipes to the ISS in 2016 to symbolize his family's Scottish heritage. He played a tune on his bagpipe in space and recorded it as a message for Earth. He decided that his trip to space would also be a personal tribute.

15. A cheese wheel

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Another educational project meant that yet another strange object was sent to space in 2010. This time, it was a cheese wheel, which seemed very out of place in space. It traveled to the ISS as another endeavor to garner interest in space and technology and STEM subjects in general.

16. French wine

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A French Wine was sent to space in 1985 with the intention of discovering how the aging process happened in space. Aged wines are considered more valuable, and space-aged wine even more so. The wine was then sold at auction to raise money for Christie's.

17. Beers

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In 2019 a company called Vostok Space Beer claimed that they had designed a beer that was intended to be drunk in space as it had been designed for consumption in the microgravity of space. So, it was sent to the ISS to be officially tested by Russian cosmonauts!

18. A microgravity toilet

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Toileting isn't easy in space, and so a microgravity toilet was designed again, with the environment of space in mind. It was intended to be able to function in the microgravity of space and so it was launched and used by people who would visit space!

19. A hamburger

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In 20001, a Russian cosmonaut named Yuri Usachov took with him a hamburger to be able to enjoy and eat when he arrived in space. It became the first hamburger ever eaten in space, or that had ever entered space. It was unusual that it wasn't as part of an experiment, but rather a personal endeavor.

20. A bag of Doritos

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A bag of Doritos was once sent to space once to test out the effects that microgravity had on crumbs. It was a great and inadvertent advertisement for Doritos. The crumbs were used to experiment with how different physical objects reacted in space conditions.

21. Swallowable toothpaste

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Swallowable toothpaste is another obscure object in space, something that we would not be accustomed to seeing on Earth. Due to the lack of gravity, spitting out toothpaste wasn't an option. So, in its place, a swallowable toothpaste was invented for astronauts to use.

22. A bust of Carl Sagen

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A small bust of Carl Sagen made out of bronze was sent to space in 2011. Sagen was a famous astrophysicist, and to pay tribute to his dedication and contribution to the field, a statue was sent aboard the Mars rover Curiosity. It marked a monumental mind and a man who had great influence in his field.

23. Eugene Shoemaker's ashes

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A portion of Eugene Shoemaker's cremated ashes were sent up to space in 1992. He was a famous geologist and planetary scientist who contributed massively to the field. To honor his death, it seemed a fitting tribute to send some of his cremated body to space.

24. Leonard Nimoy's DNA

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Leonard Nimoy's role in Star Trek was so iconic that as a tribute to the world-renowned character Spock, Nimoy's DNA was sent to space in the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in 2020. And so with his DNA launched, Spock became a part of space, just as we all knew him.

25. Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Album

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Michael Jackson may have been deemed the king of pop, but it was clear that people wanted him to be the king of pop in space, when his Thriller album was sent to space. The album was sent aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis in 1985 during the singer's popular era.

26. Beer yeast

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Another strange addition to space was beer yeast, which was sent by Anheuser-Busch in 2019. Her intention of sending beer yeast to ISS was to study brewing in space, how it would work, and what it would entail. She wanted to see how the process would react in a different environment.

27. An art project

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Artist Trevor Paglen launched a reflective art project into space in 2018. The project was called 'Orbital Reflector'. It blended art and technology together which intended to provoke an important discussion about our presence in space and our relationship with the Universe.

28. A tesla

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As many people know, Elon Musk launched a Tesla Roadster into space as part of SpaceX's mission to demonstrate the Falcon Heavy Rocket and show how much load it could take. It was also a publicity stunt to advertise multiple items in one huge endeavor.

29. A time capsule

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The ISS has launched several time capsules into space. These contain all kinds of different things, from historical artifacts from Earth, or cultural objects that show the progress of humankind. They also contain messages from Earth, in order to be found in the future,

30. A copy of Isaac Asimov's Foundation series

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A copy of Isaac Asimov's Foundation series was sent to space in 2021. SpaceX sent digital copies of the science fiction books to the International Space Station as a part of an educational program. The stunt aimed to promote Science, Tech, Engineering, and Mathematical subjects!