by Justin Berger and Kelly Doty
Thu, June 20th 2024 at 9:03 AM
Updated Thu, June 20th 2024 at 9:12 AM
MAY 23, 2024 – Justin Clontz, of Haywood County, is sharing his story after he discovered a mysterious, heavy object that may have been from outer space. The grounds maintenance worker found the object earlier this week along a remote trail on a property owned by The Glamping Collective in Canton — and nobody heard what was likely a loud commotion as the object slammed into the earth. (Photo: WLOS staff)
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — It’s official: Debris found littered across several places in Western North Carolina were part of a SpaceX spacecraft that broke apart during re-entry.
A statement from NASA Public Affairs on Thursday, June 20, confirmed what many had wondered for weeks.
ON REMOTE TRAIL, MAN STUMBLES UPON HEAVY, MYSTERIOUS OBJECT POSSIBLY FROM OUTER SPACE
“SpaceX has confirmed the re-entry of Dragon spacecraft trunk hardware to NASA following its service missions to the International Space Station,” the news release said.
“Most recently, the trunks that supported SpaceX’s 30th commercial services resupply and Crew-7 missions re-entered over Saudi Arabia and North Carolina, respectively,” the release continues.”NASA is unaware of any structural damage or injuries resulting from these findings.”Officials said the debris was expected to burn up upon re-entry, but several pieces turned up in the mountains of North Carolina.
“During its initial design, the Dragon spacecraft trunk was evaluated for re-entry breakup and was predicted to burn up fully,” the release said. “The information from the debris recovery provides an opportunity for teams to improve debris modeling. NASA and SpaceX will continue exploring additional solutions as we learn from the discovered debris.”
SPACE JUNK IN YOUR BACKYARD? ANOTHER NC RESIDENT FINDS MYSTERIOUS DEBRIS
Between late May and early June, News 13 spoke with three mountain residents who stumbled upon what some believed to be debris from space. One piece found on a remote trail in Haywood County was three feet high and so heavy it had to be carried out using a lawn mower. Two smaller objects were found by residents in Franklin and Jackson County.
MORE SPACE DEBRIS? NC RESIDENT SUSPECTS OBJECT THAT CRASHED INTO HOUSE CAME FROM ABOVE
NASA officials advised anyone who finds a piece of space debris to not handle or retrieve it. Instead, residents are asked to contact the SpaceX Debris Hotline at 1-866-623-0234 or at recovery@spacex.com.