Unknown event in Taiwan, Province of China on Mon 8th January 2024

Taiwan's defense ministry apologized on Tuesday evening after issuing an islandwide air raid alert in English that warned of an incoming missile that was actually a satellite from China.

The emergency alert, sent to mobile phones across Taiwan, correctly reported in Chinese that a satellite had flown over the southern part of the island at around 3 p.m. local time. It also urged people to beware of potential falling debris.

But in English, the message read: "Air raid Alert. Missile flyover Taiwan airspace, be aware."

Several hours later, the Ministry of National Defense issued an official apology, confirming that China had only launched a satellite and that no missile was fired.

"The default English message was not revised and therefore incorrectly stated the launch vehicle as "missile," its statement said. "The MND extends an apology for any confusion this may have caused."

The ministry added that the satellite had exited Earth's atmosphere when it flew over Taiwan.

But the ministry added that the satellite's trajectory "unexpectedly flew over" Taiwan, indicating that China didn't tell local officials about the launch's flight path.

China launched its Einstein Probe on Tuesday afternoon from Xichang, Sichuan province, via one of its Long March rockets.

The probe is a collaboration between the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the European Space Agency.

Taiwan's defense ministry later released a diagram of the satellite's trajectory.

A spokesperson for the defense ministry told local media that authorities believed its flight path was unusual and thus issued a warning.

It's not the first time Taiwan's defense officials were alarmed by Chinese satellite launches. In October, the ministry warned of another satellite on a Long March rocket that entered Taiwanese airspace, though it added that the launch "poses no threat to us."