Home owner demands NASA compensation after space debris falls through house

Space debris fell onto a home in Florida in March.

On March 8th, a 700g object crashed into the home of Alejandro Otero in Naples, Florida.

NASA later confirmed that the piece of debris was part of a container of used batteries that were discharged directly from the International Space Station (ISS) in 2021.

Instead of burning up completely before hitting the ground, a small piece remained intact as it passed through the Earth's atmosphere, according to NASA.

Otero's son was home when the space debris ripped through the roof and penetrated two floors of the house.

Cranfill Sumner, the law firm representing the family in the lawsuit, said NASA has six months to resolve the matter. The firm also stated that NASA's settlement could set a precedent for similar compensation cases in the future.

NASA has not commented on the lawsuit. However, the US agency previously pledged to investigate why the piece of debris appeared when the container should have been destroyed in the atmosphere. NASA also said it would update the relevant mechanical engineering model to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

In the past, space debris resulting from human activities in Earth orbit has fallen to the ground on numerous occasions, such as the SpaceX Dragon capsule crashing onto an Australian farm in 2022.

Skylab, America's first space station, also crashed in Western Australia.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bi-rac-vu-tru-roi-thung-nha-kho-chu-doi-nasa-boi-thuong-185240622071121463.htm