According to a report by CBS News on the 1st (local time), a piece of space debris weighing nearly 500 kg fell in a village in southern Kenya.
According to the Kenya Space Agency (KSA), on December 30th, a metal ring-shaped object with a diameter of about 2.4 meters and a weight of 499 kg fell in Mukuku Village in Makueni County.
The KSA stated that the object appears to be a ring separated from a rocket launch vehicle, which is designed to burn up during reentry into the atmosphere or fall in uninhabited areas.
The KSA is retrieving the fallen debris for further investigation.
However, they do not believe the fallen object poses a threat to public safety.
Incidents of space debris falling are not uncommon.
In 2022, part of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule fell on a sheep farm in southern Australia.
In February of last year, a 2.3-ton Earth observation satellite, ERS-2, reentered the atmosphere after outliving its lifespan, causing the European Space Agency (ESA) to become extremely concerned.
In March, an object suspected to be space debris fell on a house in Naples, Florida, leading the homeowner to file a lawsuit against NASA.
In June, an object suspected to have fallen off a Chinese rocket dropped in a village in southwestern China, causing residents to evacuate.