DEBRIS SPATIAUX (RETOMBEE) — NATIONAL (FR) 24.12.2011

GEIPAN received several email accounts of spectacular luminous trails in the sky late on the afternoon of 24 December 2011. It also received reports of 4 observations by aircraft pilots, all describing an intense light at very high altitude over the Strasbourg–Black Forest region. The source describes reentrynews.aero as an official US space-debris re-entry information site. It reported object 2011 078B entering the atmosphere at 16:26 UTC, coinciding with the sightings; its indicated final orbit narrowly crossed the observation locations. The debris was identified as the 4th stage of the Soyuz-FG launcher launched from Baikonur on 21 December 2011 at 13:16 UTC for mission TMA-03M, carrying 3 cosmonauts to the ISS. GEIPAN concludes that all witnesses observed that 4th stage re-entering.