Introducing the Le Creuset x Star Trek collection, a limited-edition lineup that takes culinary adventures into uncharted territory. The collection includes the Star Trek Galileo Shuttlecraft Casserole Dish ($150), which offers a generous 1.6-liter capacity. Fans of Vulcan culture can enjoy the $35 Spock Ear Mug, an ideal companion for Vulcan spiced tea. The mug features gold detailing around the rim as a tribute to Starfleet uniforms. Additional pieces include the $55 Spock Hand Spoon Rest and a glowing $40 oven mitt in baby blue, complete with a Vulcan salute and the iconic message, “Live Long and Prosper.”
Le Creuset is taking its Star Trek collection beyond the digital storefront, too. Sent Into Space helped send the Enterprise casserole dish more than 111,000 feet above Earth—an altitude that reaches approximately 99.5 percent of the planet’s atmosphere. While the mission is clearly an imaginative marketing stunt, launching a heavy cast-iron casserole dish to the edge of space required careful planning and extensive logistical preparation.
Chris Rose, co-founder of Sent Into Space, led the effort to launch the Le Creuset casserole dish into the stratosphere. The team used a space-capable balloon that was taller than the White House. The dish remained aloft for 1 hour, 19 minutes, and 4 seconds while enduring temperatures as low as -63.4°C (-82.12°F). “Because of the weight, we had to carefully consider how to secure everything and maintain a balanced payload,” Rose told WIRED. The team also used simulations to predict where the casserole dish would land after its parachute descent and to help avoid bodies of water, populated areas, and urban locations.
“Airline industry regulators need to know that you can’t have a Le Creuset casserole dish floating out of an A380 as it takes off,” Rose said. Sent Into Space therefore maintained constant communication with aviation authorities, coordinating flight clearance as well as telemetry and onboard communications. During the early stages of reentry, the Star Trek Enterprise casserole dish reached speeds of more than 300 miles per hour before slowing down and landing safely in Lincolnshire, England, according to Rose.
Back on Earth, the Le Creuset x Star Trek collection offers cookware and kitchen accessories designed for both cadets and captains. If you want to add the limited-edition Star Trek cookware to your kitchen, shop soon—supplies may disappear faster than a cloaked spacecraft.
Source: www.wired.com