MUSK LAMBASTED BY CHINESE INTERNET USERS FOR NEAR-MISSES WITH SPACE STATION

Tue 28 December 2021:

On Tuesday, Chinese internet users slammed Elon Musk after Beijing said its space station took evasive action to avoid colliding with two of his SpaceX satellites, a blow to the tycoon’s reputation in a country that has embraced his Tesla electric cars.

According to a document submitted to the UN’s space agency this month, China’s Tiangong space station was forced to take “preventive collision avoidance control” during two “close encounters” with SpaceX’s Starlink satellites in July and October.

On both occasions, the satellites moved into orbits that prompted space station operators to change course, the document submitted to the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs said.

“The manoeuvre strategy was unknown and orbital errors were hard to be assessed,” Beijing said of the satellite involved in the October incident, adding that it took action to “ensure the safety and lives of in-orbit astronauts”.

After landing a rover on Mars and sending probes to the Moon, Tiangong — which means “heavenly palace” — is the latest achievement in China’s drive to become a major space power.

The station’s core module was launched into orbit earlier this year, and it is expected to be fully operational by 2022.

Chinese social media users slammed Musk and his companies for the incident, with one hashtag amassing 87 million views as of Tuesday morning.

“How ironic that Chinese people buy Tesla, contributing large sums of money so Musk can launch Starlink, and then he [nearly] crashes into China’s space station,” one user commented.

“Prepare to boycott Tesla,” said another, in a nod to a common response in China to foreign brands perceived to be acting contrary to Beijing’s national interests.

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

“Why don’t we just do what they do?” one wrote.

Despite Musk’s popularity in China, Tesla’s reputation has suffered this year as a result of a series of crashes, scandals, and data storage concerns. Tesla sells tens of thousands of vehicles in China each month.

Tesla, on the other hand, remains extremely popular in China, where one out of every four of its vehicles is sold. In Shanghai, the company is also constructing a rare wholly-owned factory.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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