After Beijing complained that satellites launched by Elon Musk’s SpaceX almost hit the station, China is asking on the United States to guard a Chinese house station and its three-man crew.
A State Department spokesman on Tuesday accused Washington of ignoring its treaty obligations to guard the protection of the three-man crew at Tiangong Station following the occasions of July 1 and October 21.
Tiangong carried out “concealment maneuvers” to “prevent a potential collision” with Starlink satellites launched by Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the federal government stated in a December 6 criticism to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.
The United States “must take immediate measures to prevent such incidents from happening again,” stated spokesman Zhao Lijian.
Zhao accused Washington of failing to meet its obligations to “protect the safety of astronauts” beneath the 1967 Treaty on the Peaceful Uses of Space.
The US embassy in Beijing didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Musk is the founder of electrical car maker Tesla, Inc. can also be the Chairman of The firm opened its first manufacturing facility outdoors the United States in Shanghai in 2019.
Tiangong, nonetheless, is a status venture for the ruling Communist Party, making it unlikely that Beijing will tolerate disruption even by a significant overseas investor in China.
Tiangong’s predominant module was launched in April. Its first crew returned to Earth in September after a 90-day mission. A second crew of two males and one girl arrived on 16 October for a six-month mission.
SpaceX plans to launch some 2,000 Starlink satellites as a part of a worldwide Internet system to supply Internet entry in underserved areas. In its thirty fourth and newest launch, SpaceX on 18 December despatched 52 satellites into orbit aboard a rocket.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
