Lone Khin villager Ko Maung Myo told The Myanmar Times yesterday that at 6am he heard what sounded like an explosion and felt the ground vibrate.
It struck near an abandoned jade mine between Hmaw His Zar village and Nat Ma Pyeit village in Hpakant township. The mysterious cylindrical object is about 12 feet (3.7 metres) long and 5 feet in diameter, said Ko Maung Myo, who took several photos of it.
The air near the object smelled acrid, as though something was burning, he said.
State officials and witnesses said there were no injuries, though the material struck near two small tents where jade miners sleep.
The Kachin State government was also unable to immediately identify the object.
A former executive engineer of the Department of Civil Aviation reviewed pictures of the object on his Facebook page yesterday, noting that it may not be an engine but a rocket booster used for launching satellites into space.