The flaming debris was part of the upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that launched 22 of the company's Starlink internet satellites to orbit from California on Feb. 1, experts say. The Falcon 9 upper stage is expendable (unlike the rocket's first-stage booster) but is designed to be brought down in a controlled fashion shortly after launch.

Debris from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has made a dramatic re-entry into the atmosphere.The Latest Tech News, Delivered to Your Inbox

Debris from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that blasted off in the United States on February 1 entered the Earth's atmosphere over Poland on Wednesday, the Polish space agency said. A 1.5 meter by one meter (five feet by three feet) chunk from an unidentified object was found near the western city of Poznan,