Out-of-control Chinese rocket to again streak back down to Earth

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This weekend, the Beijing government expects fragments of a sizable

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recently launched Chinese rocket to fly back through the atmosphere in an uncontrolled re-entry that will be avidly watched but offers minimal harm to anyone on the ground.

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The Long March 5B rocket launched on Sunday, carrying a laboratory module to the new Chinese space station being built in orbit.

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This was the rocket's third trip since its initial launch in 2020, making it the most powerful in the country.

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US analysts predict that the rocket's whole main-core stage, which is 30 metres long and weighs 22 tonnes would fall back toward Earth

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after atmospheric friction pulls it downward, as happened during its first two launches.

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The rocket body will ultimately disintegrate as it descends into the atmosphere

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but it is big enough that many pieces will probably survive a fiery re-entry to rain debris over a region that is about 2000 km long and 70 km wide, according to independent US-based analysts.

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It is impossible to predict where the debris field would likely be in advance, but specialists will be able to narrow the area of potential impact closer to re-entry in the coming days.

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The Aerospace Corp, a government-funded nonprofit research centre outside Los Angeles, estimates that re-entry will occur at approximately 12:14am (GMT) on Sunday

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plus or minus 16 hours, based on the most recent tracking data.

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