China on Monday denied responsibility for a rocket set to hit the Moon after experts said a piece of space junk came from Beijing’s lunar exploration program.
Astronomers initially thought the wayward object was a part of a SpaceX rocket that exploded seven years ago and was released into space after completing its mission.
But it is now considered a booster for Chang’e 5-T1, launched in 2014 as part of the Chinese space agency’s lunar exploration program.
The rocket is expected to crash into the far side of the Moon on March 4.
But China’s foreign ministry on Monday rejected the claim, saying the booster in question had “safely entered Earth’s atmosphere and was completely consumed”.
Beijing “sincerely maintains the long-term stability of activities in outer space”, spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular press briefing.
China has set its sights on becoming a space superpower and took a historic step last year with the launch of the longest crewed mission to its new space station.
The world’s second-largest economy has invested billions in its military-powered space program and hopes to eventually send humans to the Moon.
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