Japan Space Agency JAXA’s second attempt to launch the H3 rocket has been a major setback for Japan’s space ambitions. As the rocket managed to leave the launch pad, the country’s space authorities had to activate the flight termination system a few minutes later after the second stage engine failed to ignite. In the announcement made by JAXA, it was stated that the self-destruct command was sent to the rocket at 10:52 Japan time, as it was “unlikely to perform the mission” and the rocket was destroyed in the air. The agency is currently investigating the case to understand where the problem is.
The H3 was originally built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries after it was approved in 2013 and cost the country 200 billion yen ($1.5 billion). JAXA had hoped to launch the rocket in 2020 and was able to complete a functional test for the H3 during the year, but had to delay the launch due to engineering issues. The first actual launch attempt on February 17 this year was canceled before launch due to an electrical interference problem in the first stage.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida views H3 as “very important to the nation’s business and national security ambitions,” Nikkei Asia reported. The H3 was developed to put many more Japanese surveillance satellites into orbit and to become a core component of a business that would offer launch services to customers. Reportedly, JAXA and Mitsubishi planned to cut the original launch costs in half, to $50 million, which they believe is less than the launch costs of SpaceX’s Falcon 9. H3 is also expected to carry cargo in the future to support the NASA Artemis program’s Lunar Gateway project.
The destroyed H3 rocket carried ALOS-3, a satellite with rapidly deployable disaster management tools to monitor affected areas. It also had an experimental infrared sensor capable of detecting North Korean ballistic missile launches, Reuters reported.
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