If NASA or the ESA finds that the ball is a COPV, they could cross-reference the ball with past space missions that required the use of COPV devices. This is how NASA classified the mysterious ball-like tank found in Texas in February, when a drought exposed an old fuel tank from the 2003 explosion of the U.S. space shuttle Columbia. The incident, which occurred on re-entry into the planet's atmosphere, killed all seven astronauts on board and scattered ship debris all over the state.
If it's not a COPV sphere, the space ball could also be part of a defunct rocket or satellite sent from Earth. NASA reports many examples of "space junk" falling from the sky in 2011; in September, the organization's 6.5-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, which helped monitor climate, fell to Earth and had parts raining over the Pacific Ocean. In October, the 2.7-ton Roentgen Satellite from Germany broke apart over the Indian Ocean. NASA expects an even larger spacecraft, the 14.5-ton Russian Phobos-Grunt Mars probe, to plummet to the planet. Since launching on Nov. 8, the craft continues to circle lower and lower to the Earth.
「おーい、出てこい」 (スコア:1)
Space Ball Drops on Namibia: NASA, ESA to Investigate Crash - International Business Times [ibtimes.com]
NASAやESAで使われていた COPV なら大気圏突入でも燃え残るし、素材の分析によるいつのミッションのものか分かるそう。しかしロケットや人工衛星の残骸、つまり宇宙ゴミの可能性もある。
どちらにしろ今後このような事例はますます多くなるだろうし、そのうち宇宙ゴミ保険なんて商品化されるかもよ。
モデレータは基本役立たずなの気にしてないよ
Re:「おーい、出てこい」 (スコア:1)
なんとなくなんだけど、中国の軌道上ミサイル実験(?)の時の破片とかかなぁ、とか思った
# や、散弾というわけじゃないはずだがw
M-FalconSky (暑いか寒い)
Re: (スコア:0)
COPV [nasa.gov]
たしかにそっくりだ