The Chinese foreign ministry has accused the US of "ignoring" obligations of the Outer Space Treaties. It has urged the US to "act responsibly" in space. Beijing is furious over two reported "close encounters" with Elon Musk's Starlink satellites.

       The two events, on July 1 and October 21, are said to have forced the Chinese spacecraft to undertake avoidance manoeuvres to avoid collision.

       In a letter sent to the UN, China said that both times there were crew members on board, “which could constitute a danger to the life or health of astronauts”.

       The CSS “Tiangong” has stayed in a near-circular orbit at an altitude of around 390km on an orbital inclination of about 41.5 degrees since it was launched on April 29.

       From May 16 to June 24, the Starlink-1095 satellite maintained a steady descent from its original 555km-altitude orbit to around 382km, and then stayed there, posing the risk of potential collision.

       The CSS was reportedly forced to take emergency measures on July 1 when the two spacecraft had a close encounter, said the note.

       The other satellite, the Starlink-2305, similarly continuously changed its orbit in October with an “unknown” manoeuvre strategy and inaccessible orbital errors.

       China said it was forced to take evasive measures again.

       They also cited article VI of the Outer Space Treaty, which was signed by all the space-faring nations of the world and forms the basis of international space law.

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       Article VI stated: “States Parties to the Treaty shall bear international responsibility for national activities in outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, whether such activities are carried on by governmental agencies or by non-governmental entities, and for assuring that national activities are carried out in conformity with the provisions set forth in the present Treaty.”

       The move saw Chinese citizens lash out against the tech billionaire’s space ambitions on Monday.

       Social media users erupted on Weibo, which is a Chinese alternative to Twitter.

       One user described Starlink’s satellites as “just a pile of space junk,” while another accused them of being “American space warfare weapons".

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       One user named Chen Haiying said on Weibo: “The risks of Starlink are being gradually exposed, the whole human race will pay for their business activities.”

       Space debris has become a very important threat to satellites and astronauts in space.

       Earlier this month, Major Tim Peake, a British astronaut has sent a warning to the UK Government about Russia’s “reckless” activities after they conducted a rocket test that reportedly endangered astronauts' lives.