Remnants of China’s largest rocket have plummeted back to Earth, plunging into the Indian ocean near the Maldives, according to Chinese state media, ending days of speculation over where the debris would hit.
Most of the debris burned up in the atmosphere, it reported, citing the Chinese Manned Space Engineering office.
Parts of the 30-metre core of the Long March 5B rocket re-entered the atmosphere at 10.24am Beijing time (2.24am GMT) and landed at a location with the coordinates of longitude 72.47 degrees east and latitude 2.65 degrees north, state media cited the office as saying.
NASA was critical of China’s lack of transparency over the rocket’s re-entry, saying spacefaring nations had a duty to minimise the risks to people and property on Earth.
“It is clear that China is failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris,” said Nasa administrator Bill Nelson, a former senator and astronaut who was picked for the role in March.
“It is critical that China and all spacefaring nations and commercial entities act responsibly and transparently in space to ensure the safety, stability, security, and long-term sustainability of outer space activities.”
The US Space command confirmed the re-entry into the atmosphere of the rocket over the Arabian peninsula, but said it was unknown if the debris had hit land or water. “The exact location of the impact and the span of debris, both of which are unknown at this time, will not be released by US Space Command,” it said in a statement.
Space watchers around the world have been anticipating the arrival of the Long March 5B space rocket since it started to lose altitude last week amid concerns it was out of control.
It is one of the largest pieces of space debris to return to Earth and prompted the White House to call for “responsible space behaviours”.
China’s failure to issue strong safety reassurances in the run-up to the re-entry fuelled anxiety.
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