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A Falcon 9 rocket that launched a batch of Starlink satellites earlier this month has created space debris over Europe.
Early Wednesday morning, people across northern Europe posted images and videos of fireball-like objects streaking through the sky. Although some believed it to be a meteor, the fiery display was actually a Falcon 9 rocket section plunging back to Earth, according to astronomer and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell.
The incident may be surprising since SpaceX’s Falcon 9 vehicle is well-known for being a reusable and reliable rocket that’s completed hundreds of missions. But only the lower stage of the rocket returns to Earth. The second, or upper stage, of the rocket, will continue to fly into space, delivering the payload to the correct orbit, which can include Starlink satellites. Once a payload is delivered, the second stage can deorbit itself, with the goal of rapidly burning up in the atmosphere over the ocean.
In this case, the upper stage to the Falcon 9 successfully delivered 22 Starlink satellites. But the rocket part failed to follow its normal “deorbit burn,” according to an earlier tweet from McDowell. As a result, it looks like the rocket section was accidentally left to gradually de-orbit and burn up in the atmosphere over northern Europe, which is far from ideal.
The Polish Space Agency has since confirmed that an “uncontrolled atmospheric entry” from the Falcon 9’s upper stage occurred over Poland. “The rocket stage, weighing approximately 4 tons, came from the SpaceX Starlink Group 11-4 mission,” the agency said. One resident reports finding parts of the debris, possibly a pressure tank, on their property.
The incident is raising concern about more incoming space debris, given that SpaceX is planning more than 180 Falcon 9 launches for 2025—an increase from 134 from last year. It also occurs after one five-year-old Starlink satellite fell back to Earth, disintegrating over the US, when SpaceX normally likes to dispose of such satellites over the ocean.
SpaceX didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But the US Federal Aviation Administration tells PCMag: “SpaceX informed the FAA the company is working to confirm whether the space debris found in Poland belongs to them.”
For now, the FAA isn’t requiring a “mishap investigation,” which could temporarily halt Falcon 9 launches. “The FAA determined that all flight events for the SpaceX Starlink 11-4 mission occurred within the scope of SpaceX’s licensed activities and that SpaceX satisfied safety at end-of-launch requirements,” the agency said. “Per post-launch reporting requirements, SpaceX must identify any discrepancy or anomaly that occurred during the launch to the FAA within 90-days. The FAA has not identified any events that should be classified as a mishap at this time.”
