Space debris that fell into Australian mountains belongs to SpaceX
Sydney, Australia, Aug 4 (EFE).- Large pieces of a space debris that fell onto farmland in Australia’s Snowy Mountains belong to SpaceX, authorities confirmed Thursday.
The Australian Space Agency said in a statement sent to EFE that its experts visited two properties in the mountains in New South Wales on Saturday, where two pieces of debris were found, one of them 30 meters long.
“The Agency has confirmed the debris is from a SpaceX mission and continues to engage with our counterparts in the US, as well as other parts of the Commonwealth and local authorities as appropriate,” it said.
SpaceX was founded by billionaire Elon Musk and typically launches its space missions from Cape Canaveral in Florida, United States.
It is likely the debris will be repatriated back to the US under international space law obligations.
On July 31, Australian National University astrophysicist Brad Tucker posted on his YouTube account images and information about the debris, which is believed to belong to a SpaceX Dragon capsule trunk.
The remains may have entered the Earth’s atmosphere on the morning of July 9 after locals reported hearing a loud boom.
The largest piece was stuck in the ground vertically on the property of farmer Mick Miners, while the other was found on the land of his neighbor Jock Wallace. A third piece has also reportedly been discovered.
The Australian Space Agency, which did not rule out the discovery of other SpaceX debris, indicated in its statement that this government agency is working on a space re-entry debris plan that determines the roles and responsibilities of the various public bodies in the country. EFE
wat/tw
