The remnants of China’s biggest rocket have landed into the Indian Ocean near the Maldives on Sunday morning, sparking international anxiety and a sharp rebuke from the US space agency.
In the early hours of Sunday, the rocket made an uncontrolled re-entry to Earth, with social media users across the world reporting sightings of debris hurtling across the skies.
The segment that landed near the Maldives was part of the Long March 5B, which carried the first core module of China’s space station into space on April 29.
“The last stage wreckage of the Long March 5B rocket has re-entered the atmosphere and the landing area is at 72.47°E longitude and 2.65°N latitude,” China’s Manned Space Engineering Office said.
Most of the debris was burnt up in the atmosphere, the Office added.
