Last Updated:
NASA News Today: A Texas woman saw a mysterious object in the midnight sky. In the morning he found the same thing lying with the parachute in his field.
NASA equipment fell in a field in Texas (Photo: AP)NASA News: In the small town of Edmonson, Texas, a woman’s morning began in a way she had never imagined. Something kept shining in the sky throughout the night and the next morning when she went out for a walk, she was shocked to see something lying in the fields. There was a huge parachute in front and below it a big metal object, as if a spaceship had fallen on the ground. Later it was revealed that it was not an alien ship, but NASA’s high-altitude research equipment which had fallen here after being swept away in the air. The video went viral on social media and the entire area came into discussion. NASA immediately sent its team and recovered that equipment. But the one who saw this scene still remembers it as a moment of ‘fear and surprise’.
- As soon as Ann Walter, a resident of Edmonson, looked out the window in the morning, her eyes fell on a huge object floating in the sky. He was coming down slowly. There was a very big parachute with him which was guiding him towards the ground.
- Upon coming closer, Walter saw that this was no ordinary thing. In size it was equal to an SUV. He told, ‘When that thing came down, we were all surprised. The parachute was so big that its diameter must have been about 30 feet.
- After some time, the family noticed that there were NASA stickers on that box. Walter immediately informed the Halle County Sheriff’s Office. Within a few hours, it was confirmed that it was a high-altitude scientific equipment of NASA which lost control and fell there.
It was told by NASA that this was part of their ‘Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility’ program. Under this program, NASA launches big balloons from New Mexico which go up to a height of 20 miles and do research. These balloons carry telescopes and sensors, which collect data about stars, black holes and galaxies.
The balloon was 20 miles in the air and fell 140 miles away.
According to the NASA team, this balloon was launched from Fort Sumner in New Mexico, which is about 140 miles away from Edmonson. Despite the government shutdown, NASA officials immediately came into action and along with the local police, found the device. Later the NASA team reached the spot with a truck and trailer and took the entire system back safely. By then the Walter family had taken pictures and videos of the parachute and box, which have now gone viral on the internet.
What is the importance of these balloons?
Such high-altitude balloon programs of NASA are very important in the world of scientific research. These balloons go far above ground telescopes and collect clear data from space. This gives new information about stars and galaxies. But this incident shows how risky such missions are. Due to wind direction and weather, balloons can drift hundreds of kilometers away and land in any field or village.
Deepak Verma is a journalist currently employed as Deputy News Editor in News18 Hindi (Digital). Born and brought up in Lucknow, Deepak’s journey began with print media and soon transitioned towards digital. He… read more