Fragmentary remains of two ancient human relatives, Australopithecus sediba and Homo naledi, were carried aboard a Virgin Galactic flight on Sept. 8. Departing from Spaceport America in New Mexico, the fossils, carried by South African-born billionaire Timothy Nash in a cigar-shaped tube, were rocketed to the edge of space.
"I am horrified that they were granted a permit," Sonia Zakrzewski, a bioarchaeologist at the University of Southampton in the U.K., wrote in an X thread, noting she would use it as an example in her class about unethical approaches. "This is NOT science."
ITT: people who know nothing about and have no interest in archaeology and paleontology arguing why this doesn't matter. You guys do know you've wandered into an Archaeology thread, right?
As an archaeologist, this is hilariously shocking. I cannot stop laughing at how ridiculous of a move this is.
What's the problem here? Just some dick taking a bone to space? Am I missing the issue?
What would happen if the ship had blown up? We would have lost those fossils. That's at least irresponsible.
