By SHOKO TAMAKI/ Staff Writer
March 7, 2023 at 17:20 JST
The second attempt was not the charm either for Japan’s new flagship H-3 rocket, whose launch ended in failure after the second-stage engine failed to ignite, according to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
The H-3 lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture at around 10:37 a.m. on March 7.
After about 15 minutes, however, JAXA sent a self-destruct signal to the rocket based on the assessment that it was unlikely to fly safely.
The H-3 was unable to put the Earth-observation satellite Daichi-3 into its scheduled orbit, which was lost in the failure.
Some anomaly is believed to have occurred. JAXA is investigating the details.
JAXA and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. jointly developed the H-3 to succeed the H-2A, which is currently regarded as Japan’s flagship rocket.
The H-3’s previous launch attempt on Feb. 17 was aborted due to a system malfunction.
Just before liftoff, an anomaly was detected in the system supplying power to the main engine, causing the voltage to drop to zero.
Necessary measures were taken, and the launch was rescheduled.
The Daichi-3 is a successor to the first-generation Daichi, whose operations ended in 2011.
The plan was to use Daichi-3, which can produce images at a resolution three times higher than that of the first-generation Daichi, to observe conditions on Earth in the event of a natural disaster.
Following the H-3 rocket launch failure, the science and technology ministry set up a task force to investigate the cause.
Science minister Keiko Nagaoka said in a statement on March 7 that “it is extremely regrettable. We will immediately investigate the cause of the failure, take measures and respond with a sense of urgency.”
The ministry is requesting a report from JAXA.
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Japan’s new flagship H-3 rocket takes off from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture at around 10:37 a.m. on March 7. (Eiji Hori)
