Hookup dating app HUD has become a major sponsor of amateur rocketeer “Mad” Mike Hughes’ latest attempt to prove the Earth is flat.
Hughes made international headlines in 2018 when he launched himself just over 500 feet into the air in a rocket he’d built by hand. The conspiracy theorist is aiming to get himself high enough to definitively determine the shape of the Earth.
A press release states that his latest effort is only possible because of the backing from HUD, which has provided a purple jumpsuit and extensive branding for the machinery.
The steam-powered rocket is covered in HUD logos, eggplant and peach emojis, and the slogan “dating isn’t rocket science”.
While the team behind the casual dating app insist they are “round earthers”, they wanted to support Hughes because they admire his “dedication and conviction”.
An Instagram post from HUD said: “At HUD we believe in ‘the unconventional and the rebels. The ones who refuse to be ordinary and the ones who stand alone’.
“(…) We believe in innovation and courage, and we stand for the weirdos…because you can’t do epic [****] with basic people.”
The launch was scheduled to take place on 11th August, with Hughes aiming to reach 1,500 feet. However, poor weather conditions meant the attempt had to be delayed until today at 10am PST.
The whole journey will be the focal point of an episode of Homemade Astronauts, a new documentary television series being produced for the Science Channel in the US.
HUD often advertises using unconventional and controversial methods. It ran a number of explicit billboards in the Los Angeles area last year after they were rejected by Facebook for being too sexual.
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