Mysterious luminous object in Lebanese sky could be ballistic missile

Lebanese space expert Majdi Saad told LBCI on Friday that, according to recent analysis,the mysterious luminous objects that appeared Thursday night in the sky of Lebanon and neighboring countries are not the remains of a meteorite whose smashed pieces create a dust glowing trail.    

“The luminous object might be a missile that drifted off course and broke down”, he explained.      

Russian Agency Novesti quoted Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Vadim Koval as saying that Russia has staged a test-launch of its missile on June 7, explaining that a Topol intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was launched from the Kapustin Yar and reached its destination in Sary-Shagan, a military testing ground in Kazakhstan.        

Prominent Israeli astronomer Dr. Yigal Pat-El, who is chairman of the Israeli Astronomical Association and an observatory director, told the Ediot Ahronot newspaper that it is quite possible that the object was a ballistic missile.       

“It most likely spun out of control and its remnants and the fuel was what people saw. It reached a height of 200-300 kilometers and that's why it was seen from so many locations," he told the newspaper.