Uploaded January 2022 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
BEIJING — A few years after creating a cloud of space debris by blowing up one of its satellites, China is now screaming for the U.N. to stop such actions — after a piece of Russian debris came within a hair of hitting a Chinese satellite.
The China National Space Administration, or CNSA, says that a piece of space debris from a Russian missile test came within 15 meters of hitting a Chinese satellite on Tuesday, January 18.
CNSA officials say they tracked the piece of debris hurtling past China’s Tsinghua science satellite at a relative speed of 19,000 kilometers per hour.
The piece of space junk is part of a debris cloud that contains around 1,500 pieces that are big enough to be tracked via Earth-based radar. The cloud was created when an old Russian spy satellite was blown apart by a Russian anti-satellite missile in November.
Experts say the cloud of Russian debris will cause chaos for spacecraft for decades to come. The CNSA said the piece of debris was getting closer and closer to the satellite each time they completed an orbit of Earth.
The two objects seem to be moving farther away from each other now, but the CNSA says that actual collisions between the pair could very likely happen in the future.
CNSA officials say international laws and regulations must be passed under the framework of the U.N. to stop actions that increase the amount of space debris.
Apart from Russia; China, the U.S. and India have also used missiles to blow up satellites, creating massive clouds of space debris that orbit Earth and endanger spacecraft.
The International Space Station was forced to maneuver out of the way of space debris more than once in 2021, while China’s Tiangong space station recently had to maneuver to avoid getting hit by a SpaceX Starlink satellite.
SOURCES: The Independent, South China Morning Post, Spacenews.com
scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3164067/chinese-satellite-near-collision-debris-russian-explosion
independent.co.uk/space/chinese-satellite-russian-explosion-debris-b1997077.html
spacenews.com/chinese-satellite-in-near-miss-with-russian-asat-test-debris
BEIJING — A few years after creating a cloud of space debris by blowing up one of its satellites, China is now screaming for the U.N. to stop such actions — after a piece of Russian debris came within a hair of hitting a Chinese satellite.
The China National Space Administration, or CNSA, says that a piece of space debris from a Russian missile test came within 15 meters of hitting a Chinese satellite on Tuesday, January 18.
CNSA officials say they tracked the piece of debris hurtling past China’s Tsinghua science satellite at a relative speed of 19,000 kilometers per hour.
The piece of space junk is part of a debris cloud that contains around 1,500 pieces that are big enough to be tracked via Earth-based radar. The cloud was created when an old Russian spy satellite was blown apart by a Russian anti-satellite missile in November.
Experts say the cloud of Russian debris will cause chaos for spacecraft for decades to come. The CNSA said the piece of debris was getting closer and closer to the satellite each time they completed an orbit of Earth.
The two objects seem to be moving farther away from each other now, but the CNSA says that actual collisions between the pair could very likely happen in the future.
CNSA officials say international laws and regulations must be passed under the framework of the U.N. to stop actions that increase the amount of space debris.
Apart from Russia; China, the U.S. and India have also used missiles to blow up satellites, creating massive clouds of space debris that orbit Earth and endanger spacecraft.
The International Space Station was forced to maneuver out of the way of space debris more than once in 2021, while China’s Tiangong space station recently had to maneuver to avoid getting hit by a SpaceX Starlink satellite.
SOURCES: The Independent, South China Morning Post, Spacenews.com
scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3164067/chinese-satellite-near-collision-debris-russian-explosion
independent.co.uk/space/chinese-satellite-russian-explosion-debris-b1997077.html
spacenews.com/chinese-satellite-in-near-miss-with-russian-asat-test-debris
