Summary
- Last month, a large piece of space junk was discovered in North Carolina.
- NASA confirmed it came from a SpaceX capsule that traveled to the International Space Station and returned in March.
- The piece came from a part of a vehicle that had been jettisoned and was expected to burn up in the atmosphere. But its discovery and several others suggest that such parts are capable of surviving the trip, NASA said.
A large piece of space debris discovered last month on a mountain trail in North Carolina came from a SpaceX capsule traveling to the International Space Station, NASA has confirmed.
The slab of debris was found in late May by an employee of The Glamping Collective, a luxury mountain resort in Haywood County, near Asheville.
“It looked kind of gross,” said Justin Clontz, who does grounds maintenance for the collective and found the board.
Now, NASA says, the roughly 3-foot-long piece came from the “trunk,” or service module, of the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule that carried four astronauts home to Earth from the International Space Station on March 12.
The trunk is at the base of the Crew Dragon spacecraft, below where the astronauts sit, and is usually used to carry cargo. According to SpaceX’s website, it is covered in solar panels that provide power “in flight and on station.”
This part of the vehicle is jettisoned shortly before the capsule re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere. NASA said the log was expected to burn up completely in the atmosphere, but its discovery, along with several others, suggests parts of the vehicle are able to survive the fiery journey.
SpaceX did not immediately return a request for comment.
The piece Clontz found was charred and covered in carbon fiber webbing. It weighs about 90 pounds — too awkward and large for one person to carry — and he said at first he wasn’t sure it was safe to touch.
“It’s something you don’t normally see,” Clontz said. “I’ve seen spaceships and stuff on TV, but the average person doesn’t see it up close.
Some smaller pieces of debris were also found in the yards of two residents in nearby towns, according to local reports.
In a statement, NASA said it was “not aware of any structural damage or injuries resulting from these findings.”
NASA said the debris came from SpaceX’s Crew-7 mission, which launched into space on August 26, 2023, then returned after a six-month expedition to the space station.
Last month, a piece of suspected trunk debris from a separate SpaceX mission was found in a farm field in Saskatchewan, Canada, according to NASA.
An uncrewed SpaceX mission to deliver supplies to the space station also resulted in debris falling over Saudi Arabia, the agency said.
Debris from the Crew Dragon trunk also landed in Colorado last year, and a similar incident occurred in Australia in 2022, NASA said.
A 1.6-kilogram piece of metallic space debris — though not from a SpaceX vehicle — tore through a home in Naples, Florida, in March. It came from a cargo pallet that was deliberately released from the International Space Station.
The Florida family that owns the house is suing NASA for damages, and the alleged incident also caused them emotional distress.
In response to questions about the lawsuit, Jimi Russell, NASA’s public affairs officer for space operations, said in an email that “it would be inappropriate for NASA to comment on a pending claim.”
It’s common for space agencies and companies to let malfunctioning hardware burn up in the atmosphere, but occasionally some pieces survive reentry. Although it is rare for space debris to fall over populated areas, given that most of the planet is covered by ocean, recent events raise questions about whether this risk may increase as space launches become more frequent.
NASA said that if people encounter SpaceX debris, they can contact the company’s debris hotline (1-866-623-0234 or recovery@spacex.com).
The Crew Dragon capsule – with the trunk section attached – is currently parked on the International Space Station. NASA said the spacecraft is expected to return to Earth with its crew later this summer.
The agency said it plans to work with SpaceX to explore “additional solutions as we learn from the discovered debris.”
“NASA and SpaceX remain committed to protecting the public, astronauts and ground crews,” the agency said.
Clontz said the piece of space junk is now on display at The Glamping Collective behind a glass case. So far, neither SpaceX nor NASA has applied to acquire it, he said.
“Every time I go to see it, I think how cool it is,” Clontz said. “To imagine that it took off from Florida, went into space and came back down and a piece of it flew right over North Carolina is pretty cool.”