Kairos, a small, solid-fuelled rocket made by Japan’s Space One, exploded shortly after its inaugural launch on Wednesday as the firm tried to become the first Japanese company to put a satellite in orbit.
The 18-metre (59 feet) solid-fuel rocket exploded seconds after lifting off at 11:01am, leaving behind a large cloud of smoke, a fire, fragments of the rocket and firefighting water sprays near the launch pad, visible on local media live-streams.
Space One said the flight was “interrupted” after the launch on the tip of mountainous Kii peninsula in western Japan and was investigating the situation. There was no immediate indication of what caused the explosion.
Can Japan’s space sector reach for the stars after H3 rocket’s smooth launch?
Can Japan’s space sector reach for the stars after H3 rocket’s smooth launch?
Shuhei Kishimoto, governor of local Wakayama government, told reporters after being briefed by Space One that a problem triggered the autonomous flight-termination system. He did not specify what the problem was. Space One has said the launch is highly automated and requires roughly a dozen staff at the ground control centre.
Kairos carried an experimental government satellite that can temporarily replace intelligence satellites in orbit if they fall offline.
Space One had planned the launch for Saturday but postponed it after a ship entered the nearby restricted sea area.
Tokyo-based Space One was established in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese companies: Canon Electronics, the aerospace engineering unit of IHI, construction firm Shimizu and the state-backed Development Bank of Japan. Two of Japan’s largest banks, Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho, also own minority stakes.
Space One wants to offer “space courier services” to domestic and international clients, aiming to launch 20 rockets a year by the late 2020s, its president Masakazu Toyoda said. Although the company delayed Kairos’ inaugural launch window four times, it said orders for its second and third planned trips have been filled, including by an overseas customer.
Kairos is composed of three stages of solid-fuelled engines and a liquid-fuelled post-boost stage engine, attempting to carry payloads of up to 250kg to low-Earth orbit.
Space One does not disclose Kairos’ launch costs, but company executive Kozo Abe said it is “competitive enough” against American rival Rocket Lab.
Last month, state-funded Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully launched its new cost-efficient flagship rocket, the H3. JAXA completed a historic “pinpoint” moon landing this year, and the H3 is scheduled to carry about 20 satellites and probes to space by 2030.
Before that, however, JAXA had faced a series of setbacks. H3’s inaugural flight failed last year, as did another flight of a smaller rocket, Epsilon, in 2022. In July 2023, an upgraded engine for Epsilon exploded at JAXA’s testing site.
In 2019, Interstellar Technologies conducted Japan’s first privately developed rocket launch with its MOMO series, although without a full-scale satellite payload.
Japan successfully launches H3 rocket, a year after failed debut
Japan successfully launches H3 rocket, a year after failed debut
The government last year promised “comprehensive” support for space start-ups with technology critical for national security, as it seeks to build satellite constellations to ramp up intelligence capabilities.
Japan’s defence ministry on Friday said it had struck a deal with Space One to boost its rockets’ payload by experimenting with fuel-efficient methane engines.
Source: scmp.com