National

Indian origin for space junk that fell to earth

By AAP Newswire

Jul 31, 2023

Green Head object — The object that washed up on a remote WA beach has been tied to an Indian launch vehicle. -PR Handout Image

A large chunk of space debris that washed up on a remote West Australian beach is mostly likely from an Indian launch vehicle, the Australian Space Agency says.

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The cylinder, about 2.5m high and partly made of a gold-coloured woven material, was found earlier in July near Green Head, about 250km north of Perth.

The discovery led to theories it could have been part of a downed airliner.

But the space agency said after an investigation it had concluded it was most likelyÂ from an expended third-stage of a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.

The PSLV is a medium-lift launch vehicle operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation.

The organisation has been active in recent months, with its latest satellite launch successfully completed on Sunday.

When the WA debris was found, Premier Roger Cook said it could find a home in a local museum alongside the wreckage of Skylab that fell back to Earth in WA in 1979.

Skylab was the USA's first space station launched by NASA.

It was orbiting unmanned for about five years before breaking up and scattering debris across the Esperance region.

By AAP Newswire

Australian Associated Press