Debris From Chinese Moon Rover Launch Crashes Into Village

No injuries reported after two houses damaged by falling rocket parts

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Reuters

The Long March 3B rocket carrying the Chang'e-3 lunar probe is seen docked at the launch pad at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Liangshan, Sichuan province December 1, 2013

Minutes after Beijing celebrated the successful launch of the country’s first moon rover on Monday, two homes more than 1,000 km away in China’s Hunan Province were struck with what appear to be rocket parts.

According to an AFP report, scrap from the Long March 3B rocket that carried the rover out of earth’s atmosphere came crashing down in Suining County— punching holes through roofs and barns in a small village in the Chinese hinterland.

Officials reportedly already given the affected villagers financial compensation for damages, according to the Xiaoxiang Morning Post.

Suining County has frequently caught the wrong end of the country’s bourgeoning interstellar ambitions. Since the 1990s, rocket parts have struck the area on almost 20 different occasions.

[AFP]