Debris that fell in Qiqihar, northeast China, has been identified as space debris. Source: AFP/Getty Source: AFP
IT WAS enough to get any space nerd excited, but Chinese experts have revealed the truth behind objects which fell from the sky and crashed into fields.
And sadly for them, it's nothing to do with little green men.
China's National Space Administration has confirmed the objects which crashed near Qiqihar city, in the north-eastern province of Heilongjiang, actually belong to a Russian satellite.
State media reported the parts broke off after a Russian rocket carrying a communications satellite fell back to Earth minutes after lift-off near Qiqihar, which borders Russia's far east.
After analysis, experts concluded they were "parts from a carrier rocket or a satellite", Xinhua News Agency reported.
Authorities were communicating on the issue "with relevant parties", it added.
Chinese Government technicians prepare to remove space debris that fell out of the sky, crashing to the ground.Source: AFP
The report came after Russia's space officials said the Proton rocket's control engine failed on Friday more than nine minutes after blast off from the Baikonur space centre.
The discovery of the debris is the latest blow to the country's once-proud space industry.
State television showed the carrier and its Express-AM4P satellite burning up in the upper layers of the atmosphere.
The $224.99 million satellite — built by Airbus Group's Astrium corporation — was meant to provide internet access to far-flung Russian regions with poor access to communication.
This is what remains of a Russian rocket carrying a communications satellite which fell back to Earth minutes after lift-off. Source: AFP