Look out below everyone! A piece of a Chinese rocket has broken off and is headed back down to Earth. Scientists have no idea where it is supposed to hit and some think that it could land in a populated area.

The piece of the rocket has dropped rapidly over the weekend, and Johnathon McDowell says that the rocket weighs about 21 tonnes. The rocket could land anywhere in the world at this point but the few areas that the scientists are looking at are: U.S, Central America, China, Australia and more.

Based on the velocity of the rocket, a small bump in the orbit could drastically change its course. People should be expecting the rocket around May 10th.

It has been reported that the rocket will have about six hours before it actually hits land or sea.

This rocket, The Long March 5B, is one of eleven missions in the construction of China’s new space station that is expected to be finished in 2022. This new space station is much smaller in size compared to the International Space Station. The new station will be about 60 tonnes while the International Space Station is 408 tonnes.

The Long March 5B is one of the largest rockets to ever re-enter the earth and some debris from it have already been seen in Washington D.C.

Link

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/may/04/out-of-control-chinese-rocket-tumbling-to-earth