CASSiE the Cosmic Hedgehog is the U.K. space mascot — sort of like Camilla the chicken here in the U.S. (CASSiE stands for Cosmic Ambassador for Space Science and Engineering.) And she probably knew when she signed up for the job that it involved some peril and adventure. But we’re still hoping for her safe return after being lost on the way back from space.
CASSiE (well, actually a mini version of CASSiE) was last seen on Friday, March 22, as she boarded a spaceship (well, actually a balloon) full of student science experiments. The balloon was supposed to take her to the edge of space. But it popped, and now CASSiE is lost on the job, somewhere in central England. Her blog has breaking news:
New data (from the transmitter of the sister ship, that was recovered) suggests that CASSiE and the experiments may be in the Leamington Spa area – Long Itchington, perhaps.
If you are in that area, please help look for MiniMe! In trees, on roofs, fields etc – espeicailly where there is poor mobile signal, as we think this could be the reason the transmitter failed after balloon burst.
The most important piece of news here, of course, is the fact that there is a place in the U.K. called “Long Itchington.” The second most important thing is that if you live there, stop itching for one second and go find that hedgie!
