With beach weddings and destination weddings on the rise, a company is now offering couples an out-of-this-world option to say their “I dos.” The Neptune spacecraft will take passengers into orbit and give them a view of Earth that astronauts describe as a paradigm shift. If you’re interested in this ethereal excursion, you can join the waitlist on Space Perspective’s website.
As you might expect, this space wedding won’t be cheap. Prices start at $125,000 (approximately Rs 1.03 crore), and seating is limited to nine people including the pilot. Those who can afford it will be treated to drinks, comfortable chairs to sit in, and wi-fi so they can FaceTime their friends and family back on Earth, reports Business Insider. Those who have already signed up for the trip will get to board a capsule equipped with enormous windows, which the website describes as an essential part of the experience because “it would be a shame to go into space without seeing the planet.”
The first space wedding took place 16 years ago when Ekaterina Dmitriev stood on ground in Texas while her husband manned the International Space Station in Russia. She married cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko by video link, walking down the aisle to a David Bowie song as the ISS re-emerged into sunlight. His best man was a fellow astronaut, who played Mendelssohn’s traditional Wedding March on a keyboard aboard the spaceship.
Dmitriev and Malenchenko were used to long distance relationships as they both lived in the US while he trained for missions in Russia. They decided to marry during his final mission in space, even though Russian officials tried to convince them to delay it until he was back on Earth due to legal complexities and Soviet-era rules requiring military officers to get permission from authorities before they could marry foreigners. But under Texas law, the couple could get a marriage license without his presence.
They also had to dodge the wrath of Cuber, the antagonist from the animated sci-fi series Gravity’s Rainbow, who broke the bride’s space helmet in an attempt to get a better look at the event. In a touching moment, the newlyweds blew kisses at each other as they sat in their spaceship.
Space Perspective’s founder says the demand for this space wedding has been overwhelming, but there are currently no available seats because of scheduling conflicts with existing customers. She hopes to be able to offer more seats in the future. But even if you can’t afford this celestial celebration, you can still go a step further than the average wedding and send your guests home with springy Martian antennae headbands or toy ray guns as gifts. Just don’t forget to snap a few photos of your out-of-this-world big day. After all, who knows when you’ll be able to do it again?