The debris of a Chinese rocket is rising towards the earth and there is no control over it.This debris may have fallen on the earth this week, but where it has not been clear.
The Chinese rocket Long March 5B was launched from China’s Hainan Island on April 29, carrying the major module of China’s International Space Station towards the Earth’s lower orbit.
However, now there is a worry about the debris of this rocket falling to the earth. It weighs about 18 tons and is the largest object to fall uncontrolled in the earth’s atmosphere in decades.
Not only China but the US space agency NASA is also keeping an eye on it.
On Thursday, the US said that it has an eye on this rocket but currently has no plans to destroy it.
US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin said, “We hope it falls into a place where no one is harmed. Hopefully at sea or somewhere like that.”
How long will it reach the earth
Many experts working on space waste say that this rocket is likely to reach Earth by Sunday. However, in such cases nothing can be said with certainty.
Long March-4B has been steadily falling since its launch on 29 April. How quickly the rocket debris falls down depends on the density and stretch of air at altitude. However, all of this is currently unknown.
Usually, rocket debris burns as it enters the Earth’s atmosphere. However, there is a possibility of escaping some part of it which reaches the surface of the earth. Usually these pieces are very small.
A similar pipe-shaped rocket debris reached Ivory Coast in Africa a year ago.
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There is little chance of harm to anyone due to rocket debris. The reason for this is not that there is water in most of the earth but it is because a large part of the land is uninhabited.
