SYDNEY, October 20. /TASS/. Australian authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the fall of a piece of space debris near an iron ore mine on the continent's west coast. This was reported by 9News television channel.
A burning object of unknown origin was discovered at about 2:00 p.m. on October 18 on the road to the Pilbara mine, 30 km east of the town of Newman. “It could be a carbon fiber pressure vessel with a composite shell or a rocket tank that is part of the aerospace industry,” a WA Police spokesman said, adding that “the object has been secured and does not pose a threat to the public.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said the object found was “definitely not part of a civil aircraft”. “We're still studying it, but everything points to it being part of a spacecraft, <...> a piece of the satellite or launch vehicle that has not completely burned up in the atmosphere,” the ministry said.
In July 2023, it was reported that a large metal cylinder was found washed ashore near the village of Green Head (located on the west coast of mainland Australia, 240 km north of Perth) and turned out to be the third stage of an Indian launch vehicle launching a satellite into orbit.
