A secret Chinese space plane has launched a mystery object into Earth’s orbit.
An astrophysicist at Harvard first spotted the object on May 24, speculating it could be a subsatellite or a piece of hardware ejected before the space plane deorbits.
The US Space Force is monitoring the situation but the purpose of the object 372 miles above the surface remains unknown.
Jonathan McDowell, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, first spotted the object and shared his findings on X (formerly Twitter).
He said: “This object could be a subsatellite deployment, or it could be a piece of hardware ejected prior to end of the mission and deorbit (the spaceplane’s first flight did something similar). Will be interesting to see if the plane maneuvers or lands soon.”
The space plane, Shenlong, launched in December has since released several objects into orbit with some sending signals over North America.
China has been secretive about the space plane, describing its purpose as providing “technical support for the peaceful use of space”.
Shenlong launched just one day after the US scrubbed the flight of its ‘spy’ plane, which the US Space Force chief said was ‘no coincidence.’
“It’s probably no coincidence that they’re trying to match us in timing and sequence of this,” General Chance Saltzman, Space Force’s Chief of Space Operations, said.
Amateur astronomer Scott Tilley was tracking Shenlong when it ejected six objects which emitted signals over North America in December.
Tilley believed the signals targeted a ground station or boat near British Columbia, Canada, where he lives.
He said: “When the spaceplane passes over me, it only emits on a certain trajectory of pass that appears to favor a location south to southwest of me.
“I.e., on higher elevation passes over me, there are no signals, but on ocean-hugging passes to my southwest, all of my observations of the object have occurred.”