Mysterious 'space junk' that washed ashore in Australia may have earthly explanation

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Mystery 'space debris' washes up on Australian beach

The giant cylinder washed up near Green Head in Western Australia, prompting speculation online with some theorizing it was from the missing plane MH370 that disappeared in 2014. (SOURCE: Reuters)

Australian authorities believe that a strange cylinder that washed up on a beach is likely space junk, while local media continues to wildly speculate on the object's origins. 

The Australian Space Agency wrote on Twitter that it has made "inquiries related to this object located on a beach near Jurien Bay in Western Australia." 

"The object could be from a foreign space launch vehicle, and we are liaising with global counterparts who may be able to provide more information," the agency speculated. "As the origin of the object is unknown, the community should avoid handling or attempting to move the object."

The agency asks that anyone who sees other suspected space debris should report it to local authorities. 

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The Australian Space Agency closed off the space around the mysterious object and urged residents to stay away while authorities investigated it. (Australian Space Agency Twitter)

The strange object, which appears to be a large cylinder with a domed top, washed ashore on Saturday, covered in barnacles and algae. Authorities sealed off the area, prompting widespread speculation as to the object’s origin. 

Social media users thought the piece might have broken off the third stage of the LVM3 rocket that launched from India last week, which residents in Australia could witness, but others argued the heavy presence of barnacles – which could take weeks to attach to a hull – would indicate a longer stay under the sea, Space.com reported. 

Even if the piece is not from the most recent launch, experts argued it is highly possible that the debris fell from some Indian rocket launch, as the country launches missions from the Satish Dhawan Space Center and flies its rockets out over the Indian Ocean, which could see the debris reach Western Australia. 

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July 14, 2023, Kolkata, India: Birla Industrial and Technological Museum live telecast of Chandrayaan-3 Mission for students in Kolkata. Indian Space Research Organisation, a major constituent of the Department of Space, Government of India, launched a Launch Vehicle Mark III M4 carrying the Chandrayaan-3 Mission at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh, India. India's moon-landing mission Chandrayaan-3 consists of an indigenous propulsion module, lander module and a rover. (Dipa Chakraborty/ Eyepix Group/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

Geoffrey Thomas, aviation expert and Editor-in-Chief at AirlineRatings.com told Core News that the debris most likely could be a fuel tank from a rocket launched in the last 12 months, then "dropped into the Indian Ocean, somewhere in the Indian Ocean, and washed up at Green Head."

He also dismissed speculation that the debris was a new piece of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, saying there was "no chance" the debris came from a Boeing 777.

"The fact is MH370 was lost nine-and-a-half years ago so it would show a great deal more wear and tear on the debris," he stressed.

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A view of the Royal Australian Air Force's Woomera Range Complex in Woomera in South Australia on December 4, 2020, ahead of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Hayabusa 2 probe's expected sample drop to Earth after landing on and gathering material from an asteroid some 300 million kilometres from Earth. (Morgan Sette/AFP via Getty Images)

European Space Agency engineer Andrea Boyd told ABC News Australia experts are "pretty sure based on the shape and the size, it is an upper-stage engine from an Indian rocket that's used for a lot of different missions." 

Boyd noted that India has used the same model since the 90s and used the equipment in "more than 50 missions," but acknowledged the presence of barnacles indicated it was likely "not the one from this year" and could be 20 years old. 

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"At the same time, when it gets thrown around the ocean it does tend to look older than it would normally," she added. 

Authorities wrapped the object in plastic and lifted it away from the beach on Tuesday where it was then taken to a locked storage facility, ABC News Australia reported.