Kyiv authorities reported Wednesday that a “NASA satellite” had crashed in the Ukrainian capital, after a powerful flash of light sparked a flurry of speculation on social media.
“About 10 p.m [19 horas em Portugal continental] On April 19, a bright flash of an aerial object was observed in the sky over Kiev, “said the head of the city’s military department, Serhiy Popko, on Telegram.” According to preliminary information, this phenomenon was the result of a NASA satellite falling to Earth.
According to an AFP journalist, the flash in the sky was not accompanied by any noise.
After the flash, the anti-aircraft warning system was triggered, Popko explained, but “the air defense was not working.”
Shortly after the flash of light, the Ukrainian Air Force stated that the phenomenon was “related to the fall of a satellite/meteor”, adding that it was necessary to clarify what had happened.
And the US space agency announced, on Monday, that an old satellite weighing 300 kilograms will enter the atmosphere on Wednesday. NASA expected most of the object to disintegrate upon re-entry into the atmosphere, but acknowledged that “some components” could “survive.” The risk of such fragments reaching an individual is low, roughly 1 in 2,467, the space agency details.
The RHESSI satellite, used to monitor solar flares, was put into orbit in 2002 and decommissioned in 2018.
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