China accuses Elon Musk of putting its space station at risk

China on Tuesday accused the United States of “serious threat” for the safety of their astronauts, after stating that two satellites of billionaire Elon Musk came close to colliding with the Beijing space station.

The Chinese space station Tiangong had to carry out “preventive controls to avoid collisions” during two “close encounters” with SpaceX’s Starlink satellites in July and October, according to a document submitted by Beijing this month to the UN space agency.

Both times, satellites entered orbits that forced operators the space station to change course, the document noted.

California-based SpaceX did not immediately comment on this information.

Chinese social media users they lashed out at Musk and his companies for the incidents, and a proposal to boycott them reached 87 million views Tuesday morning.

In China, Tesla electric cars that the billionaire’s company makes are widely accepted.

“How ironic that the Chinese buy Tesla (cars), contributing large sums of money so Musk can launch Starlink and then (almost) colliding with the Chinese space station, “commented one user.

“Get ready to boycott Tesla”, said another, in a typical response in China to foreign brands seen as contrary to Beijing’s national interests.

Some speculated that Washington would have imposed sanctions if the roles had been reversed.

According to China, which avoided attacking Musk, The United States did not meet its “international obligations” in the space.

“This constitutes a serious threat for the life and safety of astronauts “ Chinese diplomats, a spokesman for Chinese diplomacy, Zhao Lijian, lashed out at the press.

In the document delivered to the UN, China indicated in reference to the October incident that “the maneuvering strategy was not known and orbital errors are difficult to assess.” He said he acted to “ensure the safety and lives of the astronauts.”

Tiangong, which means “heavenly palace”, It is the latest achievement in the Chinese effort to become a space power, after landing a robot on Mars and sending probes to the Moon.

The central module of the station entered orbit months ago and should be fully operational by 2022. Two crews of three astronauts each have succeeded on board since June.

Evasive maneuvers become more frequent as more objects saturate the near-Earth orbit and force trajectory adjustments to avoid accidents, he said. Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

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“We really have noticed an increase in the number of nearby passes since the Starlink began to be sent “, he told AFP, adding that a collision would “completely destroy” the space station and kill everyone on board.

Musk is admired in China but the reputation of Tesla, which sells tens of thousands of cars in the country each month, has declined after a series of accidents, scandals and concerns over data storage.