It is, without any hesitation, the distal end of a hot shot generator for irridium sattelites. There are over 180 of the satellites orbiting the Earth at any given moment and on a semi-regular basis they will eject packets of irridium in order to detect anomilies in the Earth's atmosphere. The satellite then lases the particles, checks the resultant scan against a known value and sends the data downrange to scientists in JPL in Houston, TX.
This has been going on for anumber of years and has assisted our understanding of the complex interrelationship between humans affect on the planet and the planet's ability to heal itself.
As you can easily detect by the view of the object there is some slight charring and the protective foil covering has worn away. This is a very interesting find and without doubt should be considered a very valuable, though frangible object.