Nasa Criticizes China After Space Rocket Returns To Earth Uncontrolled China

The US Space Administration confirmed that the Long March 5B rocket re-entered Earth’s atmosphere over the Indian Ocean on Saturday, but referred any questions about the possible scattering of debris and the impact site to China. The Long March 5B rocket was used last Sunday to launch an uncrewed spacecraft, named Wentian, carrying the second of three modules needed by China to complete its new Tiangong space station. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson criticized Beijing on Saturday, saying the failure to share details of the rocket’s descent was irresponsible and dangerous. “All space transport nations should follow established best practices and do their part to share this type of information in advance,” Nelson wrote, “to enable reliable predictions of potential debris impact risk, especially for heavy vehicles, such as the Long March 5B. , which pose a significant risk of loss of life and property. “This is critical to the responsible use of space and to ensuring the safety of people here on Earth.” Aerospace Corp, a nonprofit government-funded research center near Los Angeles, said it was reckless to allow the rocket’s entire core stage — which weighs 22.5 tons — to return to Earth in an uncontrolled reentry. Last week, analysts said the missile’s body would disintegrate as it plunged into the atmosphere, but it was large enough that several pieces were likely to survive a fiery reentry in raining debris over an area roughly 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) long. 70 km (44 miles) wide. The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment. China said earlier this week that it would closely monitor the debris but that it posed little risk to anyone on the ground. Fragments of another Chinese Long March 5B landed in Ivory Coast in 2020, damaging several buildings in the West African nation, although no injuries were reported. The U.S. and most spacefaring nations generally pay the extra cost of designing their rockets to avoid long, uncontrolled re-entries — something that has largely been seen since large chunks of Nasa’s Skylab space station fell off orbit in 1979. and landed in Australia. . The Tiangong space station is one of the crown jewels of Beijing’s ambitious space program, which has landed robotic rovers on Mars and the Moon and made China only the third nation to put humans into orbit. The new module, propelled by Long March 5B, successfully docked with Tiangong’s core module on Monday, and the three astronauts who have been living in the main compartment since June successfully entered the new lab. China has poured billions of dollars into spaceflight and exploration as it seeks to build a program that reflects its stature as a rising world power. With Agence France-Presse and Reuters

title: “Nasa Criticizes China After Space Rocket Returns To Earth Uncontrolled China " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-07” author: “Mary Jackson”

The US Space Administration confirmed that the Long March 5B rocket re-entered Earth’s atmosphere over the Indian Ocean on Saturday, but referred any questions about the possible scattering of debris and the impact site to China. The Long March 5B rocket was used last Sunday to launch an uncrewed spacecraft, named Wentian, carrying the second of three modules needed by China to complete its new Tiangong space station. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson criticized Beijing on Saturday, saying the failure to share details of the rocket’s descent was irresponsible and dangerous. “All space transport nations should follow established best practices and do their part to share this type of information in advance,” Nelson wrote, “to enable reliable predictions of potential debris impact risk, especially for heavy vehicles, such as the Long March 5B. , which pose a significant risk of loss of life and property. “This is critical to the responsible use of space and to ensuring the safety of people here on Earth.” Aerospace Corp, a nonprofit government-funded research center near Los Angeles, said it was reckless to allow the rocket’s entire core stage — which weighs 22.5 tons — to return to Earth in an uncontrolled reentry. Last week, analysts said the missile’s body would disintegrate as it plunged into the atmosphere, but it was large enough that several pieces were likely to survive a fiery reentry in raining debris over an area roughly 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) long. 70 km (44 miles) wide. The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment. China said earlier this week that it would closely monitor the debris but that it posed little risk to anyone on the ground. Fragments of another Chinese Long March 5B landed in Ivory Coast in 2020, damaging several buildings in the West African nation, although no injuries were reported. The U.S. and most spacefaring nations generally pay the extra cost of designing their rockets to avoid long, uncontrolled re-entries — something that has largely been seen since large chunks of Nasa’s Skylab space station fell off orbit in 1979. and landed in Australia. . The Tiangong space station is one of the crown jewels of Beijing’s ambitious space program, which has landed robotic rovers on Mars and the Moon and made China only the third nation to put humans into orbit. The new module, propelled by Long March 5B, successfully docked with Tiangong’s core module on Monday, and the three astronauts who have been living in the main compartment since June successfully entered the new lab. China has poured billions of dollars into spaceflight and exploration as it seeks to build a program that reflects its stature as a rising world power. With Agence France-Presse and Reuters