On January 30, an uncontrolled Chinese rocket, 13 meters long and weighing 11 tons, will fall on European territory

On Friday, the second stage of the Chinese ZQ 3 R/B launch vehicle, launched in December 2025, is expected to make an uncontrolled re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. Due to the significant dimensions and mass of the object, experts warn of potential danger to the southern regions of Denmark and the Baltic countries, as well as a threat to air traffic in the probable impact zone. This was reported by the Finnish Meteorological Institute, writes UNN.

Details

The Finnish Meteorological Institute, together with the EU Space Surveillance and Tracking (SST) network, has determined that the stage is about 13 meters long and weighs up to 11 tons. Such parameters mean that the structure will not be able to completely burn up in the dense layers of the atmosphere. According to preliminary calculations, fragments of space debris could reach the Earth's surface in the Baltic Sea region and adjacent territories.

The exact time and location will only be confirmed after re-entry into the atmosphere

Currently, the estimated time of impact is 10:40 Kyiv time, but the error due to the uncontrolled nature of the object is about 10 hours in both directions.

Air Traffic Monitoring and Safety

European space control services are on high alert, as the object's trajectory covers densely populated areas. Air traffic controllers have been given recommendations for possible route adjustments on Friday. The Chinese side has not yet provided detailed technical characteristics of the object, which complicates the prediction of the exact landing site of the surviving parts of the rocket.

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