Its return to earth could have gone wrong, but ultimately the segment of the Chinese space rocket launched last Sunday to complete the country’s new space station disintegrated over the Indian Ocean on Saturday, without causing any problems. This does not exempt China from criticism.
Most of the stage of this Long March rocket, which weighs 20 tons, disintegrated and caught fire while entering the atmosphere, above the Indian Ocean. Only a few debris fell into the water, northeast of the island of Borneo, according to the Malaysian space agency.
As in previous launches, Beijing is doing well. This rocket was not designed to control its descent from orbit. Earth is 70% covered in water, so there is little chance of the debris causing any damage, but still, in 2020, the remains of another Chinese Long March had crashed into villages in Côte d’Ivoire without causing injuries, but by damaging buildings.
China has also not communicated to other space agencies the trajectory of the rocket. Minutes from the crash, no one knew exactly where the debris would fall. On Twitter, NASA boss Bill Nelson, criticized Beijing. Information sharing is essential ” for ” responsible use of space and to keep people safe here on Earth “, he wrote.
…reliable predictions of potential debris impact risk, especially for heavy-lift vehicles, like the Long March 5B, which carry a significant risk of loss of life and property.
Doing so is critical to the responsible use of space and to ensure the safety of people here on Earth.
— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) July 30, 2022