In July 1979, humanity nervously watched the skies as NASA's first space station, the 77-ton Skylab, underwent an uncontrolled atmospheric reentry. NASA calculations predicted that unburned pieces of the station would impact harmlessly in the Indian Ocean, but mathematical errors combined with an unexpected storm in the upper atmosphere shifted the debris trajectory. Skylab disintegrated over the remote southeastern coast of Western Australia, showering oxygen tanks, titanium pieces, and heavy metal plating across the Outback and the small coastal town of Esperance.
While global media rushed to the remote town to cover the crash site, local municipal officials reacted with characteristic Aussie humor. The Shire of Esperance issued NASA an official $400 citation for littering, citing local ordinances against dumping waste on public land. NASA, busy managing the political fallout of the uncontrolled crash, ignored the lighthearted fine.
The unpaid ticket quickly became a famous piece of space trivia, remaining unsettled for three decades. In 2009, a California radio host learned that the fine remained unpaid. Raising $400 through small listener contributions, the radio station officially paid off the 30-year-old littering ticket on NASA's behalf.
The Shire of Esperance graciously issued an official receipt, finally resolving space history's most famous municipal citation.