Getting things into orbit is expensive. Like, a few thousand dollars per pound expensive. So, as you’d expect, efficient use of weight is big concern. Basically, bring only what you need and trim its weight as much as possible. It of course then comes as no surprise that we have a long and colorful history of sending stupid shit into space. Let’s take a look, shall we.

-a cargo tag from Jamestown

-a pogo ball

-an entire set of encyclopedias

-NASCAR starter flags

-a medieval broadsword

-Marilyn Monroe’s dress

-dirt from Yankee Stadium

-a stone slab from the Pantheon

-a piece of Newton’s apple tree

-fossilized dinosaur skull

Only half of those are real. Well, as far as I know, only half. It’s up to you to sort out which is which.