BEIJING: China is closely tracking the remnants of a Long March 5B rocket launched over the weekend, but the chances of debris causing damage are very slim, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Last year, China was accused of being opaque, particularly by NASA, after it kept silent about the estimated debris trajectory of a Long March 5B rocket and its reentry window.

On Sunday, China’s most powerful rocket was launched for the third time since its maiden flight in 2020 to deliver a module into orbit as part of the contruction of a Chinese space station.

It is understood that this type of rocket adopts a special technical design and most components will be destroyed during reentry, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular media briefing, when asked if China knew when and where the rocket debris could land.

The probability of causing harm to aviation and the ground was very low, Zhao said.

Scientists say the odds of a populated area on land being hit by such debris are low, with most of the Earth’s surface covered by water. But, in 2020, pieces of the first Long March 5B fell over the Ivory Coast and damaged several buildings.

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A few hours after Zhao’s attempt to allay concerns, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) disclosed the location of rocket in a rare public statement.

As of 4:00 p.m. (0800 GMT), the rocket was 263.2 km from the Earth at its farthest and 176.6 km at its nearest, the agency said, in its elliptical orbit.

The rocket is expected to reenter the atmosphere in the coming days under the pull of the Earth’s gravity.

No estimated reentry details were given by CMSA on Wednesday.