Mysterious Space Junk Set to Fall to Earth Next Month
Scientists are monitoring a man-made object on a collision course with Earth.
— -- A mysterious piece of space junk is expected to fall back to Earth next month, giving scientists a prime view of how incoming objects behave when they hit the Earth's atmosphere.
The object -- officially named WT1190F -- is expected to enter Earth's atmosphere on Nov. 13, at 2:20 a.m. ET, at which point much of it will likely burn up, according to a bulletin from the European Space Agency's Near Earth Object Coordination Center.
It's unclear what the object is, but it "is likely to be a rocket body," according to the ESA.
The space junk is believed to be several meters in diameter. What parts, if any, survive re-entry into Earth's atmosphere are expected to splash down in the Indian Ocean 60 miles off the coast of Sri Lanka, according to the bulletin.
Scientists said the small size of the object means it won't likely be a threat to the area, however it is still expected to put on a spectacle, lighting up the afternoon sky for a few seconds for those in the area.
Watching its trajectory over the next couple of weeks until the point it falls back to Earth will allow scientists to better study how debris behaves when it re-enters the atmosphere while also letting them test "readiness for any possible future events involving an asteroid, since the components of this scenario, from discovery to impact, are all very similar," the bulletin said.