NASA announces condemnation statement regarding Chinese rocket 'Long March 5B' that has fallen into the Indian Ocean

On May 9, 2021, Chinese authorities reported that the wreckage of the Chinese rocket 'Long March 5B', which had fallen to Earth, had fallen into the Indian Ocean. 'There is little risk of falling and the majority of the debris has burned out in the atmosphere,' Chinese officials said, but the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said in this regard, 'China meets responsible standards for space debris. It's clear that there isn't one. '

Large Chinese rocket segment disintegrates over Indian Ocean
https://phys.org/news/2021-05-large-chinese-rocket-segment-disintegrates.html

China's Rocket Debris Landed Near Maldives: Here's What to Know --The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/08/science/china-rocket-reentry-falling-long-march-5b.html

The Long March 5B is China's largest rocket and was launched on April 29, 2021 to carry the main module ' Tenwa ' of the space station 'Tengu' planned by China. However, although Long March 5B succeeded in putting the main module in orbit around the earth, there is concern that the 'core stage' that stores the separated fuel and engine will remain in orbit and fall to the surface of the earth. I did.

China's Long March 5B rocket is expected to fall 'out of control' to Earth, current location is here-GIGAZINE

Normally, the core stage mounted on the rocket has a configuration of 2 to 3 stages, the first stage falls in low earth orbit, the second and subsequent stages are separated from the rocket body outside the atmosphere, and then the engine is re-injected. It is a mechanism to perform 'controlled fall' to enter the atmosphere and drop it into a safe sea area. However, it is believed that Long March 5B had only one core stage and did not have a controlled fall mechanism.

After that, the core stage of Long March 5B is believed to have re-entered the atmosphere at around 11:24 JST on May 9, and fell into the Indian Ocean near the Maldives. After reporting the fall, the China Manned Space Project Beneficial Office (CMSEO) said, 'After monitoring and analyzing Long March 5B, we confirmed that it had entered the atmosphere and fell into the Indian Ocean. Most of the wreckage was during the fall. It was destroyed. '

However, the core stage of Long March 5B is said to have a total length of about 30 m and a weight of about 21 tons after consuming fuel. According to Marlon Zolge, chief engineer at the Orbital and Re-entry Debris Research Center (CORDS) , about 20-40% of the mass falls to the surface without burning out, in the case of Long March 5B this time. It was expected that about 5-7 tons of objects would fall.

Following a series of events, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said, 'It's clear that China doesn't meet responsible standards for space debris.' 'Space exploration nations are on Earth during the re-entry of objects. We need to minimize the risk to our people and property and maximize operational transparency. It is important that China and all space developers and commercial organizations act responsibly in space. ' Has issued a statement to do.

However, the Chinese Communist Party-backed tabloid Global Times wrote in an editorial dated May 9 that 'American concerns are a shameless exaggeration and it is true that the wreckage of Chinese rockets is of particular danger. It's anti-intellectual. ' Chinese officials have long stated that 'there is little risk of the fall of Long March 5B.' In fact, the land area is about 30% of the surface of the earth, and the places where people live are limited, and the risk of human damage is low from the angle of entry into the atmosphere.

In addition, Long March 5B caused a situation in which the core stage was dropped to the ground in May 2020, and it is clear that there is no controlled drop mechanism. It is said that the Long March 5B was not equipped with a controlled fall mechanism in this launch, but it is possible that China will continue to launch rockets with the same design in the future.