One of China’s scientific satellites has narrowly avoided colliding with a piece of orbital debris generated by Russia blowing up one of its old satellites, the Chinese space agency said.
The “extremely dangerous encounter” took place on Tuesday when the Tsinghua Science Satellite missed a piece of debris by 14.5 metres, the China National Space Administration’s (CNSA’s) debris centre said on Wednesday night.
The debris was believed to have been generated by the anti-satellite missile test carried out by Russia in November, and the risk of a collision would remain high for the near future, the centre said.
Moscow fired what was believed to be an S-500 Prometey missile on November 15, blowing up a long-defunct Soviet intelligence satellite that had been launched in 1982 and leaving an estimated 1,500 pieces of debris in orbit.
02:05
Debris from China’s Long March rocket lands in Indian Ocean, drawing criticism from Nasa
Debris from China’s Long March rocket lands in Indian Ocean, drawing criticism from Nasa
The test drew criticism from the United States, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling it “recklessly conducted”.
US space agency Nasa had said that the safety of International Space Station (ISS) crews would be endangered by the debris, and it postponed a spacewalk in late November after receiving a debris notification at the ISS.