Mystery 'space balls' wash ashore on Queensland beach
Members of the public are being advised to avoid close contact with the spheres.
The Australian Space Agency (ASA) is investigating the source of "space balls" that washed ashore on Forrest Beach in Queensland over the weekend.
Six spherical objects were discovered on the beach and "appear to be pressure vessels from a space launch vehicle" that recently re-entered Earth's atmosphere, according to the BBC.
Eyewitness account
Trevor Kyle, a local resident, told ABC Australia that he guided police to the remote location where the first sphere was found and was present when three more washed ashore.
"I wasn't looking for them; they just jumped out of the water," he told the outlet.
Kyle said the first object was discovered by a crab fisherman, who was instructed by police to immediately leave the area.
Investigation ongoing
"The ASA is continuing to engage with international authorities to formally confirm the launch vehicle and launching state," the space agency said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday.
It also warned that additional debris could be found.
"Never touch, move, or recover suspected space debris and assume it to be hazardous until advised otherwise," the ASA's X post reads.
"Move away and contact emergency services."
Queensland's Fire Department established a 50-metre exclusion zone around the site while authorities assessed the objects. As of Sunday, the zone remains in place, the BBC reports.
Emergency crews wearing protective gear were seen removing the spheres and placing them into hazardous materials containers amid initial concerns they could contain toxic substances.
Officials have urged anyone who encounters suspicious debris in the area not to touch it and instead contact emergency services.
There's a lot of debris in space
‘Space junk’ is a loose term used to define pieces of machinery or equipment left behind in space. It can refer to big objects — like dead satellites — or small pieces of debris.
Sometimes it remains in space, and other times it falls back down to Earth.
There is a lot of it: Data suggests there are about 2,000 active satellites and about 3,000 decommissioned ones surrounding our planet. The Natural History Museum says there are about 34,000 pieces of space junk measuring more than 10 centimetres, and “millions of smaller pieces.” Every particle has the potential to cause catastrophic damage, to satellites and space vessels, given the fact that it is zipping around at speeds of around 29,000 kilometres per hour.
Space junk is likely to become an even bigger problem in the years ahead.
In 2024 we collectively launched more than 2,800 objects into space, and that number continues to grow annually.