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Chinese space-lab falls back to Earth, breaks-up over Pacific Ocean
Last updated on Apr 02, 2018, 10:51 am
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China's now-defunct space station Tiangong-1 has re-entered the Earth's atmosphere above the South Pacific, according to reports.
Chinese officials pegged the time of re-entry at 00:15 GMT on Monday. The date of Tianong-1's re-entry has coincided with earlier estimations.
Since the space lab crashed to Earth during the daytime, it's unlikely for anyone to have captured any amateur images of the vessel's re-entry.
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Details
The space station disintegrates upon re-entering the Earth
![The space station disintegrates upon re-entering the Earth]( "The space station disintegrates upon re-entering the Earth")
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According to the China Manned Space Agency, "Most parts were burned up in the re-entry process." It is still not clear how much debris was intact when it reached the Earth's surface.
Providing more exact information regarding the vague "above the South Pacific" re-entry, astronomer Jonathan McDowell from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said Tinagong-1 appeared to have come down north-west of Tahiti.
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Context
China's first space station Tiangong-1 was launched in 2011
![China's first space station Tiangong-1 was launched in 2011]( "China's first space station Tiangong-1 was launched in 2011")
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Earlier in 2016, China had admitted that it had lost control of the space station, which then proceeded to hurtle towards the Earth in an uncontrolled re-entry.
Tiangong-1, which literally means 'heavenly palace,' was launched in 2011.
Used for both manned and unmanned missions, it was visited by China's first female astronaut Liu Yang in 2012.
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Estimations
China wrongly predicted the re-entry to be off Brazil
![China wrongly predicted the re-entry to be off Brazil]( "China wrongly predicted the re-entry to be off Brazil")
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Earlier, the Chinese space agency had wrongly predicted that the space station would be off Sao Paulo, Brazil.
On the other hand, the European Space Agency (ESA) had said that Tiangong-1 would break up over water.
"The probability of being injured by one of Tiangong-1's fragments is similar to the probability of being hit by lightning twice in the same year," ESA had said.
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Twitter Post
The space station weighed 8.5 tonne
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By my calculations, Tiangong-1 will be the 50th most massive uncontrolled reentry from Earth orbit in history.
— Jonathan McDowell (@planet4589) March 25, 2018 -
Information
China has already launched Tiangong-2
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Since losing control of Tiangong-1, China has launched Tiangong-2, a space station which is currently operational. It was re-fuelled last year and is expected to be a permanent space station with a large core module and two smaller ancillary modules by early next decade.
