Stephen Hawking’s uninhibited joy while experiencing zero gravity
Stephen Hawking is taking his rightful place among the titans of scientific pioneering.
The famed theoretical astrophysicist, who died on March 14, will have his ashes interred at Westminster Abbey, next to the graves of Sir Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin.
Dean of Westminster Abbey John Hall announced the news on Tuesday, releasing a statement to Abbey’s website praising Hawking’s contributions to the world of science.
“It is entirely fitting that the remains of Professor Stephen Hawking are to be buried in the Abbey, near those of distinguished fellow scientists,” Hall shared. “We believe it to be vital that science and religion work together to seek to answer the great questions of the mystery of life and of the universe.”
Among the other scientific luminaries interred Westminster Abbey are Ernest Rutherford — considered to be the forefather of nuclear physics who discovered the concept of radioactive half-life — and Sir Joseph John Thomson — a Nobel Laureate in Physics who is credited with first identifying the electron and discovery of the subatomic particle.
Hawking’s family will first hold a memorial service at the University of Cambridge’s church, Great St Mary’s, on March 31, BBC reports. His ashes will be interred later this year.