Mysterious ‘hairy’ object plunges from the sky into farmer’s field

Authorities have confirmed the object is a piece of space junk possibly from a Chinese rocket

A large cylindrical object fallen from the sky in rural Argentina has caused a stir among locals.

A combination of metallic parts and fibrous materials some 1.7m long and 1.2m wide, it landed in a field in Puerto Tirol belonging to farmer Ramón Ricardo González on Thursday evening.

He called police, who brought in bomb disposal experts to ensure it wasn’t an explosive device or contained chemical hazards.

Investigations identified a serial number engraved on one of its surfaces, indicating it is debris from a spacecraft.

Chaco Police Headquarters have since told local media the object has been confirmed to be a rocket fuel tank capsule.

Experts who inspected it said it is most likely a high-tech type of tank called a composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV).

The cylender was described as having a valve system inside it (Picture: Jam Press) It was covered in frayed fibrous material typical of damaged carbon fibre (Picture: Jam Press)

These typically consist of metallic liner wrapped in composite fibres, allowing fuel fluids to be stored under very high pressure in a relatively light object.

It’s not clear what spacecraft the tank came from, however reports have speculated it could be a Chinese rocket.

Mr González’s field is directly beneath the known flight path of a Jielong 3 rocket launched from a sea vessel off the coast of China on Wednesday.

Residents in several parts of Argentina under the flight path told local media they saw a strange glowing object moving across the sky that night.

It’s believed the object is a COPV fuel tank used in rockets (Picture: NASA)

Space junk incidents have risen along with the increase in spacecraft launches driven by the booming market for satellites.

According to the European Space Agency (ESA), some 1,200 intact space objects re-entered Earth’s atmosphere last year.

The number of space debris fragments which fell to Earth is believed to be much higher but is impossible to measure.

The ESA estimates there are more than 45,000 fragments larger than 10cm in diameter orbiting earth, and millions of smaller pieces.

Nobody has ever been killed by space debris re-entry, though there have been a handful of minor injuries.

The risk of injury is low as a significant amount of debris burns up during re-entry and the vast majority of the planet’s surface is seawater or uninhabited land.

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