A component of a Chinese rocket is expected to fall to Earth on July 30 – space and astronomy

As happened in 2020 and 2021, one of the components of the Chinese Long March rocket this year also entered the stage of an uncontrolled fall to Earth. The impact expected on July 30 with uncertainty of plus or minus 15 hours, is from a component of the Chinese Long March 5B rocket, which last July 24 The second module of the Chinese space station Tiangong was brought into orbit. According to the American Center for Orbital Studies and the Return of Space Debris (Ropes), the rocket component is likely to remain in flight for about a week. However, it is still too early to know where the space debris fell: the area affected by the fall of space debris is currently limited to the North Pacific Ocean, but it is impossible to obtain reliable data until a few hours before returning.

“60-70% of the central stages of rockets launched into space are subject to uncontrolled reentry, but they are usually much smaller objects,” explains Ansa Luciano Anselmo, a researcher at the Institute of Information Science and Technology “Alessandro Faido” of Cnr (Isti- Cnr) and expert in spatial dynamics. “In this case, on the other hand, we’re talking about 25 tons – adds Anselmo – it’s the most massive object that can come back uncontrollably.”

The part of the rocket that will return to Earth, in fact, is the main stage, that is, the central cylinder equipped with two engines. Luciano Anselmo continues: “Normally this large pitch does not enter orbit, but falls back into the sea in a controlled manner immediately after launch.” “This type of mission, on the other hand, requires that the main stage also enter orbit, which poses the problem we are discussing, because there is no possibility to restart the engines to direct the missile’s fall. A problem that will be repeated – says the researcher – with the launch of the third unit needed to build a station Chinese space Tiangong”.