A large, hot object fell from the sky in a Kenyan village on Monday afternoon, according to local residents cited by the country’s national broadcaster. This incident prompted an immediate investigation by Kenya’s national space agency.
The object has since been identified as a “fragment of a space object,” the Kenya Space Agency (KSA) stated on Wednesday. The agency retrieved the item, which landed in the remote village of Mukuku in the southern Makueni County. It was described as space debris—a metal ring approximately 2.5 meters in diameter and weighing around 500 kilograms.
“The agency confirms that the object, a metallic ring measuring about 2.5 meters in diameter and weighing approximately 500 kilograms, is a fragment of a space object,” KSA said in a statement.
Preliminary assessments suggest it is likely a separation ring from a rocket, the agency added. Typically, space debris either burns up upon entering Earth’s atmosphere or falls into the ocean. However, this isolated case is under thorough investigation.
Julius Rotich, the police commander for Mbooni County, told the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) that the object was still hot when officers arrived on Monday. Residents had to be kept away until it cooled down. Police cordoned off the area, where the ring had landed among some trees, while curious villagers gathered around.
The KSA is currently analyzing the object to determine its exact origin.
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