Japan successfully tested the new flagship "H3" rocket, after a rocket failed to launch last year. The rocket was launched from Tanegashima Space Center on Saturday, February 17, reaching an orbital altitude of about 670 kilometers (420 miles). It deploys a set of microsatellites and a virtual satellite that simulates a real payload.
With the successful launch of the "H3", Japan will begin to phase out the H-2A rocket, which has been in service since 2001, which will be decommissioned after two more launches. Several upcoming missions depend on H3, so this successful test is crucial.
The launch was delayed by two days due to bad weather. The H3 rocket, manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, will now be the main launch vehicle for the Japanese space program. The rocket's first flight in March 2023 failed to reach orbit, which led to the loss of an Earth imaging satellite.
The successful launch and deployment of the satellite came as a relief to Jaxa and the project members. The live broadcast of the launch event that followed showed the Jaxa Command members cheering and hugging each other.
I now feel like the weight is off my shoulders," said Masashi Okada, Jaxa H3 project manager, at a press conference after the launch. "But now is the real start of H3 and we will try to improve it steadily. ”
The H3 is approximately 57 meters (187 feet) tall and is designed to carry larger payloads. The two microsatellites were deployed about 16 minutes and 43 seconds after liftoff. These include an Earth observation satellite called CE-SAT-IE, developed by Canon Electronics, and Tirsat, an infrared Earth observation instrument that will observe the temperature of the Earth's surface and seawater.
Speaking at a press conference, JAXA President Hiroshi Yamakawa said, "We are relieved to be able to announce good results. ”。Yamakawa added that the main goal of H3 is to ensure independent access to space and to make Japan competitive in the face of growing demand for international satellite launches. "We have taken an important first step towards achieving this goal," he said.
The successful launch follows the successful launch of two other H-2A rockets last month, which successfully launched a spy satellite into orbit. A few days later, Jaxa's Slim robot, an intelligent lander for probing the moon, achieved the first-ever precise "precision" moon landing, albeit an unfortunate lander sideways landing. However, at the final stage of the descent, two autonomous rovers were successfully deployed: a miniature jumping robot and another designed to roll on the surface. Both sent back**, and even if Slim couldn't be operated, they could continue to explore and send messages back.