NASA has determined that the mysterious object that crashed into a Florida home last month was "discarded space junk.

The debris was identified as a metal support utilized to mount batteries on a cargo pallet, which had been ejected from the International Space Station in 2021 and managed to survive re-entry into Earth's atmosphere.

NASA confirmed on Monday that the mysterious object that fell from the sky and crashed into a home in Florida last month was, in fact, a piece of space debris. The cylindrical metal fragment, weighing 0.7kg (1.6lbs) and measuring 10cm (four inches) tall and around 4cm (1.5 inches) wide, was jettisoned from the International Space Station in 2021.

On March 8th, the object crashed through the roof of Alejandro Otero's home in Naples, Florida, and landed on the floor. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. The debris, described as a metal support used to mount old batteries on a cargo pallet for disposal, was later transported to the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral for further analysis. NASA confirmed that the debris originated from a pallet jettisoned from the International Space Station three years ago. While most of the load was expected to disintegrate upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere, this particular piece managed to survive. Otero described the incident as accompanied by a "tremendous sound" and noted that it caused significant damage to his home, narrowly missing his son.

Mr. Otero expressed his shock and disbelief upon learning about the incident from his son after returning home early from a holiday. He emphasized the rarity and force of the object's impact, causing significant damage to his house. Despite the damage, he expressed gratitude that no one was injured in the incident.

Source: Sky news