China rocket crashes after ‘accidental’ launch

A rocket accidentally launched after detaching from its launch pad crashed in China on Sunday.

images on social media showed the Tianlong-3 rocket falling to Earth and exploding in a hillside in central China’s Henan province.

Tianbing Science and Technology, which developed the
rocket, said the rocket “detached” from the launch pad during a ground test.

It claimed the incident was due to a structural defect. It added that there were no casualties from the incident as people in the area had been evacuated.

The Tianlong 3 is a Chinese designed and built rocket intended to function as a reusable launch vehicle.