South Koreans, used to getting mobile phone alerts warning of earthquakes or Covid outbreaks, received a more unusual notification Monday morning, cautioning of danger from above.
The country's Ministry of Science and ICT sent a nationwide alert that "some debris from a falling US satellite may crash near the Korean peninsula" at around lunchtime. "Please be careful when going out during that time."
The ministry subsequently said in a statement that the retired spacecraft - NASA's Earth Radiation Budget Satellite - was "believed to have passed over the Korean Peninsula, and no special damage has been reported so far."
The US space agency said last week that the 5,400-pound (2,450 kilo) satellite would likely re-enter the earth's atmosphere on Sunday or Monday.
While most of the nearly 40-year-old spacecraft was expected to burn up upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere, some components were expected to survive and crash to Earth. NASA had said the risk of harm coming to anyone on the planet was "very low."
South Korea, however, was taking no chances and utilized its emergency broadcast system to send a message to the nation's mobile phones.
Most man-made space debris which falls to Earth poses little threat to humans, although some events, like the uncontrolled re-entry last year of rocket boosters used to launch a Chinese space station module, have prompted concerns about the potential for ground strikes.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Book Explores Bharat Ratna Awardee Karpoori Thakur's Legacy
North Korean Diplomat Defects From Cuba To South Korea: Report Study Abroad: Best Universities To Study In South Korea South Korea Set To Deploy 'StarWars' Laser Weapons To Take Down N Korean Drones Amid Huge Row, Karnataka Pauses Bill For Reservation In Private Sector Firms Travel Influencer Aanvi Kamdar Dies After Falling Off A Waterfall Near Mumbai UP Banker Dies By Suicide After 6 Months Of Bullying, Body-Shaming Major Crackdown Launched On Terror Network In J&K After Doda Encounter UK's New Government Vows To Remove 92 Unelected Peers From Upper House EU's Carbon Tax Could Cost India 0.05% Of GDP: Report Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.