An independent grocery store in Utah plans to send one of its store-made donughnuts high into Earth's atmosphere. No word yet on how that doughnut will taste when it returns.
Today (June 7) at 10 a.m. MDT (12 p.m. EDT, 1600 GMT), Bowman's Market (which is based in Kaysville, south of Ogden) will launch a high-altitude balloon from its parking lot — weather permitting, of course. The mission plan calls for the doughnut to rise about 22 miles (35 kilometers) high, before the balloon bursts and descends to Earth. Bowman's customers can take part in a contest to guess where it will land.
The store will make this near-space shot to celebrate National Doughnut Day. "It's been an extremely rewarding project so far," Noah Wenzel, who doubles as the store's baker and the mission's flight director, said in a statement. "We view ourselves as a unique store, and launching a doughnut [toward] space matches up with our mission to do fun and extraordinary things in our community."
There are many opportunities for customers to take part, including naming the doughnut, watching in person as it launches and (for the kids) enjoying a special coloring contest. There will also be a livestream of the mission at bowmansmarket.com.
If all goes according to plan, the balloon will soar well above commercial airplane flights and most of Earth's air, high enough to see the curvature of our planet and black sky. But it won't fly into space. The internationally defined space boundary is at 62 miles (100 kilometers) above sea level, and the U.S. Air Force defines space's edge as being 50 miles (80 kilometers) high.
If successful, this doughnut won't be the first tasty treat to soar to high altitudes. In 2012, Harvard students sent a hamburger aloft in a balloon, which mysteriously went missing sometime before landing, UPI reported. And in 2017, World View Enterprises launched a Kentucky Fried Chicken Zinger sandwich to the edge of space.
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