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In the SES launch on March 4, 2016, when the satellite deployed, there was quite a bit of junk that was released when the satellite was released. What was that?

enter image description here

PearsonArtPhoto
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Probably ice. As the spacecraft goes through the atmosphere water condenses, then freezes. When the satellite is released, some of that ice breaks off.

ventsyv
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  • It could be, but this was a part of the rocket that was covered in the atmosphere – PearsonArtPhoto Mar 05 '16 at 03:27
  • Actually after watching the video more closely, it appears like some insulation was ripped. You can see it clearly in the video at 46:45 (T+00:27) – ventsyv Mar 05 '16 at 04:01
  • @ventsyv like I mentioned above Both the technical and "full" webcast videos on the SpaceX website are less than 44 minutes long. Both of your timestamps are beyond the full length of the videos. I wonder - are they editing the videos and reducing their length? – uhoh Jun 04 '16 at 02:47