An uncontrolled Chinese rocket will fall to Earth on the weekend, Russia will not be touched

This weekend is expected to fall to Earth out of control after the launch of the Chinese heavy launch vehicle Long March 5B. The exact place of the fall of the rocket debris is still unknown.

In this regard, Roskosmos issued a message soothing to the Russians. The press service of the state corporation confirmed that according to the Automated Warning System for Hazardous Situations in Near-Earth Space (ASPOS OKP), the second stage of the Long March 5B rocket, which on April 29 launched the Tianhe module of the Chinese station, carries out an uncontrolled deorbiting.

Roscosmos explained:

The stage has no means of active de-orbit maneuver. It will cease its ballistic existence from 04:00 Moscow time on May 8 to 23:00 Moscow time on May 9. On May 7-8, real probabilities of the fall point will appear. This situation will not affect the territory of Russia ”.

The dry weight of the step is about 18 tons, the height is 33.2 meters, and the diameter is 5 meters. The object was entered into the ASPOS OKP database and cataloged on April 30, 2021. The main information and analytical center ASPOS OKP collects and processes coordinate and orbital information coming through the stage of the Long March 5B launch vehicle.

As of May 4, 2021, the object was in low-earth orbit with the following parameters:

• The height at its apogee is 326 km;
• height at perigee – 165 km;
• circulation period – 89.41 minutes;
• the inclination of the orbit is 41.47 degrees.

Part of the booster stage structures will cease to exist in the dense layers of the atmosphere, however, individual non-combustible structural elements can reach the earth’s surface. On May 7-8, the real probabilities of the fall point will become known. As Roskosmos emphasizes, this situation will not affect the territory of the Russian Federation.