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China said its most powerful rocket returned to Earth as NASA criticized Beijing for not sharing crucial data about its trajectory.
The Long March-5B rocket, which weighs more than 1.8 million pounds, lifted off from the Wenchang Spaceport on July 24, carrying another module to China’s first permanent space station, Tiangong, which is construction process
The “vast majority” of debris from the rocket burned up during re-entry into the atmosphere around 12:55 a.m., China’s Manned Space Agency said in a statement on its official social media account on Sunday. Weibo.
The rest “landed in the sea” at 119.0° East and 9.1° North, he said. These coordinates are in the waters off the island of Palawan, southeast of the Philippine city of Puerto Princesa. China’s statement did not say whether debris fell to the ground.
Experts were concerned that the massive size of the 176-foot rocket and the risky design of its launch process would prevent its debris from burning up when it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere. The rocket left its empty 23-ton first stage in orbit, looping the planet for days as it neared landing on a hard-to-predict flight path.
The remains of China’s rocket launch to land, and no one knows where
The United States said China was taking a significant risk by allowing the rocket to fall uncontrolled to Earth without being advised of its potential path.
“The People’s Republic of China did not share specific trajectory information as its Long March 5B rocket fell back to Earth,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson tweeted Saturday.
“All spacefaring nations should follow established best practices and do their part to share this type of information in advance to enable reliable predictions of the potential risk of debris impact, especially for transport vehicles heavy, such as the Long March 5B, which carry a significant risk of loss of life and property,” he continued. “Doing so is critical to the responsible use of space and to ensure the safety of people here on earth.
Before the rocket’s re-entry, China tried to quell fears that the debris posed a risk to the public, predicting that pieces of the center stage would likely end up in the sea.
US criticism of China regarding space debris has been longstanding. “It is clear that China is not meeting responsible standards for its space debris,” read a statement released by NASA earlier this year.
Some experts have supported China’s position that the chances of the debris causing serious damage are low. According to a paper published in the journal Nature Astronomy this month, the chances of someone being killed or injured by parts of a rocket would be 1 in 10 over the next decade. But many believe that launch designs like the Long March 5B are an unnecessary risk.
Last week, China’s state-run Global Times newspaper accused the West of showing “sour grapes” and trying to discredit its space efforts. The article accused the United States of leading a “smear campaign” against the “robust development of China’s aerospace sector.”