Space junk has crash-landed on lavish North Carolina property.
A landscaping worker at The Glamping Collective, a mountaintop resort near Asheville in Haywood County, discovered a large, mysterious object on May 22. NASA confirmed that it was part of a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule that will arrive at the International Space Station (ISS) in 2023.
One large piece, about the size of a standard car hood and covered in carbon fiber, was found on a hiking trail, while several other smaller pieces landed in the backyard of a nearby home, according to the report. From Space.com.
These objects were from “trunk hardware from the Dragon spacecraft, which was predicted to burn up completely,” ABC13 Reported in North Carolina.
Space debris hits Florida family’s home
On May 22, SpaceX debris was discovered along a trail at a luxury mountaintop resort in North Carolina. (The Glamping Collective)
Other Works SpaceX funded by Elon Muskof NASA said in a statement that the capsule was discovered in Canada in February and more recently in Saudi Arabia around the same time the debris was found in North Carolina.
“NASA is not aware of any structural damage or injuries resulting from these findings,” NASA said in a statement.
Boeing’s Starliner capsule was meant to act as a “life raft” for astronauts if a Russian satellite collided with the space station.
A family in Florida had a similar, but more terrifying, experience when they came across space junk that didn’t burn up as expected.
In March, a 1.6-pound metal alloy object crashed through the roof and second floor of a home in Naples, Florida, while a family was inside the home.
“It crashed through the roof and went up to the second floor. My son nearly fell over,” homeowner Alejandro Otero told X.
A strut recovered from a NASA flight support unit used to attach batteries to cargo pallets for the International Space Station. The strut survived re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere on March 8, 2024, and crashed into a home in Naples, Florida. (NASA)
A piece of space junk the size of a car hood was found on a boardwalk at a luxury mountaintop resort in North Carolina. (The Glamping Collective)
The Glamping Collective Resort in North Carolina was lit up at night. (The Glamping Collective)
NASA previously said in an email to Fox News Digital that the object that struck the Otero family home, like the one that crashed in North Carolina, “was meant to heat up and break up upon re-entry.”
No one was injured in either situation, but Otero family attorney Micah Nguyen Worthy said “these ‘near miss’ situations could have had tragic consequences.”
“The recent increase in space traffic has made space debris a real and serious problem,” Worthy said.
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NASA said it was conducting a “detailed investigation of the jettison and re-entry to determine why the debris survived and to update its modeling and analysis.”
“NASA remains committed to responsible operations in low Earth orbit, and in the event we need to release a space instrument, we will mitigate risks as much as possible to protect people here on Earth.”
In this Saturday, April 24, 2021 photo released by NASA, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule approaches the International Space Station for docking. (Associated Press via NASA)
Boeing’s Starliner and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon are very different rockets. (NASA)
Further supporting Worthy’s claim, a defunct Russian satellite exploded near the International Space Station last week and was briefly discussed during a conference call with NASA and Boeing officials on Friday.
During a videoconference with reporters, the focus was mainly on Starliner’s helium leak and thruster malfunction, with officials expressing little concern about debris from the satellite reaching Earth.
The threat was averted as the debris avoided the International Space Station.
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The resort promoted space junk as an attraction.
“Come experience it for yourself! Starting Monday, June 3rd,” the resort announced on its website. “We’ll be showcasing space debris at the start of the Sunset Summit Trail!”
A Florida family took a tougher stance against an object that crashed into their home.
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft land on Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on November 9, 2021. (Joe Raedl/Getty Images)
“The aurora streams beneath the Boeing Starliner spacecraft docked to the Harmony module’s forward port as the International Space Station rises 266 miles above the Indian Ocean, southwest of Australia,” according to NASA. (NASA/Matt Dominik)
Worthy filed a claim against NASA on behalf of the Otero family, saying it was an opportunity for the space agency to “set a precedent for what responsible, safe and sustainable space operations should look like.”
“If this incident had occurred overseas and someone in another country had been harmed by space debris similar to that in Mr. Oteros’ case, the United States would have been absolutely liable to pay for those damages.”
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She implored NASA and the U.S. government to follow the same legal principles.
NASA declined to comment on pending litigation.
