Ignorant China’s another crash

With time human’s space exploration interest is increasing. This is leading to more and more space programs by different countries. However, not all launches are successful. A recent case is the 25-ton crash of parts of the Chinese rocket Long March 5B on the Indian ocean. Well, there are many other things to look at as we dwell on this crash and learn for the future.

History

China has a history of conducting these uncontrolled launches, leading to remnants of rockets re-entering the atmosphere and causing crashes.

It was the third incident of its kind in the past three years. In May 2021, pieces of another Long March rocket landed in the Indian Ocean. So, it’s been a pattern, but China seems not to be learning from mistakes or treating the issue as petty.

Long March 5B

China is constructing the Tiangong space station after the US banned it from International Space Station. The Long March 5B was launched on July 24 and carried heavy payloads, the heaviest of recent times to the station for its construction.

China’s spaceflight agency said the vast majority of wreckage from the last stage of Long March 5B burned up upon re-entry. Conversely, the US confirmed the booster re-entry into the Indian Ocean.

Risk with crashes

Experts have warned that although most chunks get burned in the upper atmosphere, about 40% are left, which may fall into the ocean or land, leading to destruction.

Aerospace Corp., an El Segundo, California-based non-profit that provides technical advice for space missions and receives US funding, had said there was a “non-zero probability” that debris would land in a populated area, estimating that more than 88% of the world’s population lives under the re-entry’s potential debris footprint.

Some projections show a ground track that crossed parts of Mexico and Brazil, then skirted the Cape of Africa before passing over land in Southeast Asia.

China ignored the warnings of western space experts days before the crash, yet it happened. It also has dismissed western concerns, declaring it the space race smear effect.

Conclusion

The falling of rocket debris through the atmosphere is not a new thing. The concern is where it falls, its weight and content, and it must not affect those on the land. China is keeping relatively less accounting of these things as seen through incidents. Space explorations are for the betterment of humanity, but we must do it with care. What use is technological advancement if we hurt our ecology?

Shashank Trivedi is the writer of this article. Views expressed and information provided belong solely to the author.