O rachetă chineză, lovită de fulger imediat după lansare. Misiunea nu a fost afectată

A Chinese Long March 3B rocket was struck by lightning shortly after launch but successfully placed a satellite into orbit. The incident occurred on July 23 during its ascent from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. Spectators witnessed the lightning illuminating the sky as the rocket continued its flight without issues. The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. confirmed the mission's success, stating the satellite Tianlian-2 (06) was deployed for communication purposes. Modern rockets are designed to withstand such events, similar to the Faraday cage principle. Although rare, lightning strikes on rockets have occurred before, including incidents involving NASA's Saturn V and a Russian Soyuz rocket.