The objects, which are hollow, made landfall on May 12 and 13 within a radius of 15 kilometers in Gujarat, the westernmost state of India, on the shores of the Indian Ocean. Three spheres impacted in open rural areas and another near a house, although no casualties or damage were recorded.
“We are not sure what kind of space debris this is, but it has fallen from the sky according to local accounts,” the local police chief said at first.
After the initial confusion, local specialists tried to decipher the origin of these objects, undoubtedly classified as space junk. Then, an American astronomer, Jonathan McDowell, published a thread of tweets suggesting that these elements could be the remains of the Chinese rocket that re-entered the atmosphere on that same date.
“The third stage of the Y86 series Long March 3C rocket, which launched the ZX-9B communications satellite in September 2021, has re-entered today (…) The orbital parameters are a bit uncertain due to its highly elliptical orbit with a perigee very low (approximately 100 km) that changes rapidly due to atmospheric resistance. But it seems to coincide with the re-entry over Gujarat (…) of which remains were found on the ground,” McDowell wrote on Twitter.
Following the review of the Gizmodo site, one of the possibilities is that the spheres are storage tanks for a liquid fuel used by the Chinese rocket.
If it is confirmed that the space junk that hit Gujarat comes from a Chinese device, it would be the second time in less than two months in which remains of equipment from the Asian giant’s space agency fall in India.
According to the source, in early April several fragments “rained” in a rural area in western India, including a large metal ring. On the occasion, the Indian Space Research Agency said that these elements came from a Chinese rocket, although the authorities of that country did not refer to the incident publicly.
In May 2021, NASA harshly criticized China for the runaway rocket that fell into the Indian Ocean. The United States space agency on the occasion described the authorities of the Asian giant as “irresponsible” with their space debris. Long March 5B orbited for almost 48 hours without control and caused worldwide concern.
Source: Ambito
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
