Supermarket chain Iceland has launched a chicken nugget into space to celebrate its 50th anniversary of trading.
The breaded snack was launched into the stratosphere from a location close to the company's head office in Deeside, North Wales, as part a joint venture with Sent Into Space, a team of experts in the field of stratospheric exploration.
Iceland said the nugget took just under two hours to reach 110,000ft (33,528m) above the Earth, climbing to peak altitude and enduring temperatures of minus 60C before heading back towards terra firma at some 200mph (322kph).
Thankfully, the snack's parachute deployed at around 62,000ft (19,000m) to enable a safe landing.
The altitude it reached was reported to be equivalent to the height of 880,000 Iceland chicken nuggets, one of the firm's most popular items.
A Tweet from the retailer said: "We don’t know who needs to hear this, but we sent the first ever chicken nugget into space today."
It added: "Why? We have no idea, but it was out of this world!"
Trading director Andrew Staniland meanwhile described 2020 as a "huge year" for Iceland despite the coronavirus pandemic and said the company wanted to "find ways to mark the occasion, just like anyone celebrating a birthday in lockdown".
"What better way to show that our products are out of this world than by sending one of our customer favourites into space," he added.
"We've all changed the way we shop in recent months and frozen food has never been so popular. We're looking forward to continuing to celebrate our 50th year with customers and thanking them for their support."
Iceland partnered with Sent Into Space, a team of experts in the field of stratospheric exploration, to send the nugget into the atmosphere.
