Scientists comment on bright object in sky over Tashkent
A bright trail in the evening sky over Tashkent on September 19 was not a meteor or a fireball, but resembles a fragment of a space rocket, the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan said, citing a preliminary analysis by the Institute of Astronomy.
According to the institute's senior researcher Kamoliddin Ergashev, the most likely explanation for the phenomenon is a spent stage of the Chinese Long March-2D (Chang Zheng-2D) launch vehicle. The rocket lifted off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center and delivered four PIESAT-2 series satellites into orbit.
Initial orbital calculations showed that the launch time and flight trajectory aligned with the time and direction of the object spotted over the capital of Uzbekistan. The Mirzo Ulugh Beg Astronomical Institute specified that the plume emerged from the engines firing at high altitude.
At the same time, the Academy of Sciences stressed that it is not yet possible to definitively confirm the object's attribution to a specific rocket. International orbital catalogs do not yet contain sufficient data on recently launched spacecraft for independent identification.
Sources
- Gazeta.uz: Яркий объект в небе Ташкента мог быть частью китайской ракеты media outlet
- Podrobno.uz: Академия наук прокомментировала видео с неопознанным объектом в небе над Ташкентом media outlet
- Anhor.uz: В Академии наук объяснили яркий объект, замеченный в небе над Ташкентом media outlet
- Nuz.uz: Не метеорит: ученые рассказали, что за яркий объект пролетел в небе над Ташкентом media outlet
This article was prepared with the help of AI and translated from the Russian original. Spotted an error — let us know.
Published 20 September 2026, 19:44 · No updates · Russian original
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