Suspected SpaceX rocket cone found on tiny Breton isle
The two inhabitants of the tiny Breton island of Quéménès have discovered a strange object on the coastline, which they suspect to be the nose cone of an Elon Musk SpaceX rocket.
Amélie Goossens and Etienne Menguy are the sole inhabitants on the island (official full name Quéménès Farm, Île d'Iroise), which is just 1.6km long and 400 metres wide.
After seeing some debris on the beach, the duo used a tractor to drag the unusually-shaped, carbon object further inland, thinking it might have fallen off a passing ship. The demi-sphere has a diameter of 2.5m, and height of 1.30m.
Instead, a quick investigation revealed a plaque bearing the “SpaceX” logo, and some lettering spelling out “nose cone”.
SpaceX is the company of billionaire American, Elon Musk, which sends rockets into space towards the International Space Station. After lift off, the rockets shed part of their body work, including the nose cone, which fall to Earth and end up in the ocean.
Ms Goossens described the discovery: “We thought maybe it was a part of a racing boat or an aerial device. [But] scratching [the surface] a little bit, we found a plaque with the SpaceX company logo on it. We realised it was from space. It must have spent quite a bit of time in the water.”
Internet users on the forum Reddit have suspected that the piece could be from the SpaceX mission CRS-13, which launched on December 15 2017, but the company itself has so far not responded to requests for confirmation.
The island of Quéménès is a 15 minute boat ride from Molène, itself a small island just off the coast of Brittany.
Couple Ms Goossens and Mr Menguy are originally from Plérin (Côtes-d'Armor).
They signed a nine-year lease and agreement to become caretakers of the land - which is owned by the coastline protection agency Le Conservatoire du Littoral - in January this year.
Training as farmers, the duo now grows vegetables, cares for chickens and sheep, and ensures systems such as the island’s solar panels and water filtering system are running smoothly. They also plan to open guest rooms in the summer.
