Sask. farmers baffled after finding strange object in prairie field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Barry and Cody Sawchuk said they came across the objects on April 28 while working out in one of their fields.
"From a far distance we thought it was garbage and then after that we got closer. We don't know what it is,” said Barry Sawchuk, of Sawchuk 89 Farms.
Barry and his four sons farm around 10,000 acres. He said they are used to finding debris in their fields, but this was a first for them.
After finding the largest piece, weighing 100 pounds, they brought it home and began searching for answers.
"It could be part of a satellite or something that re-entered cause it's all torched, you can see where it's torched. Stuff has been burnt off,” Barry explained. “It's carbon fibre composite, and there is aluminum honeycomb on it and in the back there is composite carbon again."
Chris Rutkowski, a science writer out of the University of Manitoba, told the story of a bizarre object making landfall in Saskatchewan back in the 1960’s.
"Wollesten Lake in 1968, a hunter found something kind of like that. It was a little more metallic but it turned out to have been a part of a satellite, possibly even Canada’s own Alouette satellite.”
"It could be part of a thermal blanket that is used to insulate the satellite as they are going up. Not necessarily the rocket itself but some of the insulation that protects it on going up,” Rutkowski added.
According to an ABC News report from 2022, officials with the Australian Space Agency investigated a three metre piece of debris that was discovered on a sheep farm.
It was believed to be part of a SpaceX rocket.
Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer, believes the debris found on Sawchuk’s farm also belongs to SpaceX.
His collaborator out of the University of Regina told CTV News he re-tracked a re-entry over Saskatchewan in February.
The debris is believed to be the trunk of a spacecraft that made its way back to Earth.
"The ground track goes right through Saskatchewan so exactly where debris will hit the ground is fairly unpredictable, because you don't know where pieces will fall off and the exact atmospheric turbulence and everything can have. The line goes right through Ituna,” Associate Professor of Astronomy Samantha Lawler explained.
Harvard astronomer Jonathan McDowell re-tracked the re-entry of a SpaceX rocket in February. Its course brought it directly above the Ituna area. (Courtesy: Jonathan McDowell)
CTV News did reach out to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, which confirmed the pieces found on Sawchuk’s farm was not part of a plane, as there have been no recent aircraft occurrences in the area.
The Canadian Space Agency has said it is looking into the matter.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bathroom break nearly derails $22 million project at city council meeting
A brief break during Wednesday's city council meeting in Saskatoon nearly cost the city dearly.
Do this once a month and extend your life by up to 10 years. No gym required
Research shows that art experiences, whether as a maker or a beholder, transform our biology by rewiring our brains and triggering the release of neurochemicals, hormones and endorphins.
Mackenzie Hughes 'gutted' after falling short at RBC Canadian Open
Mackenzie Hughes had the dream scenario of winning the RBC Canadian Open in his hometown within reach but then it all slipped away.
Motorcycle doing wheelies, weaving in, out of traffic caught on Highway 417
A motorcycle driver is facing charges after being caught on Highway 417 doing wheelies and weaving in and out of traffic, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says.
Oilers advance to Stanley Cup final by beating Stars in Game 6
The Edmonton Oilers rode their special teams and goaltender to victory on Sunday, beating the Dallas Stars 2-1 to win the National Hockey League's Western Conference and earn a berth in the Stanley Cup final against the Florida Panthers.
'Rotten rock': Climate change altering the face of Canadian mountaineering
The Abbot Pass hut stood for decades in a rugged saddle between two iconic peaks, overlooking the limpid turquoise of Banff National Park's Lake Louise — a destination for alpinists from around the world until the ground melted beneath it and forced its closure.
North Korea says it will stop sending trash balloons as South Korea vows strong retaliation
South Korea said Sunday it’ll soon take retaliatory steps against North Korea over its launch of trash-carrying balloons across the border and other provocations.
'The legacy I want to leave:' Mother with Stage 4 cancer advocates for survivors
People around the world are observing National Cancer Survivor Day, an annual celebration held to honour patients who have been through the often difficult and traumatic experience of living with cancer.
Driver missing after vehicle plunges into the Riviere-des-Prairies between Montreal and Laval
Emergency response crews are on the scene Sunday morning after a vehicle plunged into the Riviere des Prairies in Montreal.