A stuffed dog named Sam was launched into space on March 5, Tuesday by elementary students in the United Kingdom. The space dog was part of a school project for kids to view the Earth's curves from outer space. Sam the plush toy was attached to a helium balloon with a tiny camera and GPS tracking equipment, but after the balloon popped only the GPS and camera from the spaceship were found.
Schoolchildren from Morecambe Bay Community Primary School in Lancashire, UK were responsible for the school project, according to CBS News. SentIntoSpace.com launched the small canine astronaut from the local Midland Hotel.
After Sam rose 15 miles (24 kilometers) into the sky the helium popped, causing the spacecraft to crash about 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the launch site. The audautious stuffed dog was missing.
Katie Wood is a teacher at the school. She said the students want to get Sam back, while one pupil explained the mascot was important because he has been to space.
The UK school then launched a social media campaign that has spread around the world, while the hashtag #FindSam is now tending on social network Twitter.
Experts believe the toy dog is within a radius of 40 to 50 miles of the spacecraft's crash site. Chris Rose from SentIntoSpace.com shared in an interview that video footage shows that a helium balloon fastener got tangled with the plush toy when it broke.
Anyone who returns Sam to the school will be rewarded with a luxury room at the Midland Hotel.
In related news, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket recently delivered an inflatable room to the International Space Station (ISS), then returned to a platform off the coast of Florida, according to BBC. This ISS attachment is the first one of its kind.
The habitat was built by the Nevada-based company Bigelow Aerospace. It is a stepping stone for rooms used for future long space trips such as to Mars.
This was SpaceX's first cargo run for NASA since a cargo rocket exploded in June 2015 soon after taking off. After Falcon 9 put the Dragon capsule into orbit it landed on its floating platform.