By SHOKO TAMAKI/ Staff Writer
September 7, 2023 at 14:02 JST
TANEGASHIMA, Kagoshima Prefecture--The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) turned to a tried-and-true rocket for a successful launch on Sept. 7 after a recent string of failures with other rocket models.
The H-2A Launch Vehicle No. 47 blasted off from the Tanegashima Space Center here at around 8:42 a.m., and its payload was later confirmed to be safely in orbit.
Fourteen minutes after the launch, the X-ray astronomy satellite XRISM was placed in orbit, and 33 minutes later, the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) probe was also placed in orbit.
XRISM is designed to replace the Hitomi X-ray astronomy satellite, which ceased operations two months after it was launched in 2016.
XRISM will orbit the Earth at an altitude of about 550 kilometers and observe X-rays emitted by celestial objects and hot gas to help unravel the origins of the universe.
The SLIM probe will attempt Japan’s first landing on the moon between January and February. The aim is to place the probe within 100 meters of its targeted landing site.
A successful landing would make Japan the fifth nation to do so, following the former Soviet Union, the United States, China and India.
The H-2A rocket was first launched in 2001 and until January 2023, there had been only one failed launch out of 46 attempts.
There are plans to use the rocket until Launch Vehicle 50.
Its successor, H-3 rocket, has had a rocky start, with its first launch in March ending in failure.
JAXA has also experienced problems with its Epsilon rocket. The Epsilon-6 rocket had to be ordered to self-destruct shortly after liftoff in October 2022 because of a malfunction. In addition, an Epsilon S rocket engine exploded during a test in July.
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Carrying a moon probe and an X-ray astronomy satellite, the H-2A Launch Vehicle No. 47 lifts off Sept. 7 from the Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan. (Kengo Hiyoshi)
