Bright light seen over Sabah caused by Chinese rocket launch, says space agency

 Members of the public who come across suspicious objects believed to be related to the launch should contact the Space Regulatory Division immediately.

The Malaysian Space Agency said the bright light spotted over Sabah on Monday was caused by a Long March 12 rocket launched from the Hainan International Commercial Launch Centre in Wenchang. (Threads pic)

KOTA KINABALU:

The science, technology and innovation ministry, through the Malaysian Space Agency (Mysa), today confirmed that the bright light spotted in the sky over Sabah early on Monday was caused by a rocket launch by China.

In a statement, Mysa said the Long March 12 rocket was launched from the Hainan International Commercial Launch Centre in Wenchang, Hainan, at 4.24am local time.

According to Mysa, the Philippine Space Agency had also identified the possibility of debris from the launch mission falling within a designated drop zone in the waters off the Philippine archipelago.

“The debris drop zone is estimated to be about 25 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa, Palawan, and 19 nautical miles from Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, within Philippine territorial waters,” it said.

Mysa said no official reports had been received so far regarding the discovery of debris from the rocket launch within Malaysian sovereign territory.

Members of the public who come across suspicious objects believed to be related to the launch have been urged to contact the Space Regulatory Division immediately at 03-8885 8685 or via email at bpadg@mosti.gov.my. - FMT