On Friday, March 22, 2020, Russia launched a military satellite into orbit and the debris it generated caused quite a stir on social media. It w as launched aboard a four-stage Soyuz-2 rocket from Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northwestern Russia early transporting a classified payload alleged to be t he fourth satellite for the country’s EKS OiBU missile-warning network. Read more for videos that some captured of the event.
The Soyuz’s third stage was expected to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere over southeastern Australia, with debris splashing down in the Pacific Ocean south of Tasmania. Many living in the region witnessed an other-worldly fireball overhead and social media posts quickly ensued.
The slow speed, about 6 kilometers per second, is a very telltale sign that it is space junk,” said Jonti Horner, an astrophysics professor at the University of Southern Queensland.
EPIC!! Check out this incredible vision captured by Mel Aldridge not long ago at Cashmore near Portland! We're getting plenty of reports. @abcmelbourne pic.twitter.com/1KuldCy6OJ
— Vic Storm Chasers (@VicStormChasers) May 22, 2020