TOKYO, Feb 17 (NNN-NHK) – Japan launched its flagship H3 rocket today, nearly a year after the maiden launch failure, according to the country’s space agency.
At about 9:22 a.m. local time, the vehicle, H3 rocket test flight No.2, was launched from the Tanegashima Space Centre, on Tanegashima Island, in the south-western prefecture of Kagoshima, the live feed of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) showed.
Considering the failed attempt last year, a mock satellite for performance verification was loaded onto the H3 rocket, instead of an actual satellite from the original plan, with two microsatellites riding along, said the JAXA.
Second-stage engine ignition and separation of one of the microsatellites were confirmed by the space agency, not long after the liftoff, marking the completion of the launch’s major task.
The next-generation heavy-lift H3 rocket is developed as a successor to the current mainstay H2A rocket, which is expected to be retired in the next fiscal year, starting in Apr. With today’s launch, the country aims to confirm the rocket’s capacity to control its positioning and deploy satellites.
In addition to satellite launches, the H3 launch vehicle can deliver supplies and materials to the International Space Station and the Gateway, a lunar-orbiting outpost planned under the U.S.-led Artemis space programme, national news agency Kyodo, reported today.
The launch, initially planned for Thursday, was rescheduled due to bad weather conditions, a year after the maiden launch failure in Mar, 2023, when the rocket’s second-stage engine failed to ignite, prompting a self-destruct sequence just minutes after liftoff.– NNN-NHK
