NASA Confirms That Metal Object That Tore Through Florida Home Was Space Station Debris

The object crashed through the roof and two floors of the Naples home before becoming lodged in a wall last month.

NASA has confirmed that a piece of metal that ripped through a house in Naples, Florida, last month was space junk from the International Space Station, and the experts are just as baffled as the homeowner.

According to a NASA blog post, analysis identified the 1.6-pound object as debris from a 5,800-pound cargo pallet that had been intentionally released from the space station three years ago.

“The hardware was expected to fully burn up during entry through Earth’s atmosphere on March 8, 2024,” the agency wrote. Instead, part of it managed to survive reentry and tore through Alejandro Otero’s home, sparking nationwide interest and speculation.

“I knew it was from outer space,” Otero told The Washington Post shortly after the incident.

NASA is still investigating how the debris survived reentry, adding that it “remains committed to responsibly operating in low Earth orbit, and mitigating as much risk as possible to protect people on Earth when space hardware must be released.”

WINK News was the first to report the incident. Otero told the outlet that the heavy metal object crashed through the roof and two floors of his home with “tremendous sound” before becoming lodged in a wall, nearly hitting his son, who was two rooms away.

“I was shaking. I was completely in disbelief. What are the chances of something landing on my house with such force to cause so much damage,” Otero told WINK News. “I’m super grateful that nobody got hurt.”

It is unclear if NASA will cover the cost of damages to his home.

For more Southern Living news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Southern Living.