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| Science & Technology |
| Out-of-control Chinese rocket smashes into the South Pacific Ocean - after Britain was put on red-alert over the potential of falling debris |
| 2026-01-31 |
| [Daily Mail, where America gets its news] An out-of-control Chinese rocket has crashed into the Southern Pacific Ocean, after Britain readied the emergency alert system over fears of falling debris. Earlier today, the UK government asked mobile network providers to ensure the alert system is operational, in preparation for a potential impact. However, the rocket has now safely landed in the ocean some 1,200 miles (2,000 km) southeast of New Zealand. The rocket, a Chinese Zhuque–3 launched in early December, crashed to Earth at 12:39 GMT, according to the US Space Force. With an estimated mass of 11 tonnes, the EU's Space Surveillance and Tracking (SST) agency had cautioned that ZQ–3 R/B was 'quite a sizeable object deserving careful monitoring.' While the vast majority of space debris which falls on Earth either burns up in the atmosphere or is never found, experts say we can be certain this rocket fell safely. Dr Marco Lanbroek, a debris tracking expert from the Delft University of Technology, says he 'strongly suspects' that the US Space Force observed the re-entry fireball using a space-based satellite. This puts an end to intense uncertainty over the rocket's potential landing site, after predictions suggested it could hit Northern Europe and the UK. Related: Chinese rocket: 2025-11-15 Stranded Chinese astronauts finally escape station… but now three MORE are trapped in space with no way to get home Chinese rocket: 2025-11-07 Plea for Elon Musk to rescue three [Chinese] astronauts stranded in space after 'unknown object' damaged their ship Chinese rocket: 2024-10-31 China's Shenzhou-19 spacecraft docks with orbital station |
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