'USSPACECOM can confirm the People's Republic of China (PRC) Long March 5B (CZ-5B) re-entered over the Indian Ocean at approx 10:45 am MDT on 7/30. Within a few days of launch, US Space Command said that debris from a large Chinese rocket re-entered Earth's atmosphere over the Indian Ocean at 12:45 pm Eastern time. 'Ĭhina launched the 23-ton Long March-5B Y3 carrier rocket, carrying Wentian on July 24 from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of the southern island province of Hainan at 2:22 pm (Beijing Time), according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

'It is critical that all spacefaring nations are responsible and transparent in their space activities,' The New York Times quoted Nelson saying, 'and follow established best practices, especially, for the uncontrolled re-entry of a large rocket body debris - debris that could very well result in major damage or loss of life. Bill Nelson, the administrator of NASA, issued a statement criticizing the Chinese for not taking more precautions, as he had for similar launches in April 2021 and July this year. Other space agencies and experts have been critical of the four rocket launches. A rocket of the same design is expected to be used again at least once more, in 2023. But while there were no immediate reports of damage, Friday's re-entry did cause disruption, including a closure of Spanish airspace that delayed hundreds of flights in the morning. Earlier, in 2020, 2021 and in 2022, three times China's rocket trembled back into the earth.Įarlier this year, China launched a Long March 5B rocket, one of the most powerful rockets in operation today, on Monday to transport a third and final module of its Tiangong space station, the centrepiece of a space program that is second only to NASA's in technological sophistication, reported The New York Times.Įach time, China has successfully gambled that the rocket's parts would not cause injury to people on the ground. This is the fourth time when a Chinese rocket hit back on Earth.

The rocket stage, by design, did not include a system to guide it into a specific spot on Earth, far away from people. According to The New York Times, this is China's latest round of celestial roulette involving a deliberate uncontrolled atmospheric re-entry.

Rocket falling to earth