Roddenberry's ashes to be sent to space

Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry will reach the final frontier at last as his remains are blasted into outer space.

A spacecraft carrying a capsule containing some of his ashes and those of his wife Majel Barrett-Roddenberry will be rocketed into space, together with digital tributes from Trek fans.

The craft will be launched by Celestis, a company set up by Barrett-Roddenberry in 1991 to take her husband's remains into orbit.

At that time, the capsule circled the earth for a short period before burning up on re-entry.

The couple's son Eugene said: "Celestis will be fulfilling a pledge made to my mother in 1995 to launch both my mother and father together, side by side and carry their spirits, memories, and the message of their life's work into the cosmos on an infinite journey into deep space."

Last month, it emerged that Barrett-Roddenberry had provided the voice of the Starship Enterprise in J.J. Abrams's upcoming Star Trek movie.

The Lost creator's prequel to the sci-fi franchise is due to open in cinemas on May 8 this year.