Japan’s space program suffered a significant setback on Tuesday when its flagship H3 rocket was destroyed during its launch due to a malfunctioning second-stage engine. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) had to send a self-destruct command to the rocket when it failed minutes after takeoff. The H3 rocket was designed to be a cheaper alternative to Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which currently dominates the commercial and government satellite launch market.
The H3 rocket was Japan’s first medium-lift rocket in three decades, and JAXA had presented it as a viable commercial alternative to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. The rocket uses a lower-cost engine with 3D-printed parts, and Japan had planned to launch it around six times a year for the next two decades if the mission had succeeded. The H3 rocket was carrying a monitoring satellite, the ALOS-3 system, which is capable of detecting North Korean missile launches.
However, engineers were forced to send a self-destruct prompt to the rocket after it experienced “reduced velocity” in the second stage of its launch. The failure is a significant setback for Japan’s space program, which had been deepening cooperation with the US in space and committed to carrying cargo to the planned Gateway lunar space station. JAXA’s failure will likely impact Japan’s future space policy, business, and technological competitiveness, according to Hirotaka Watanabe, a space policy professor at Osaka University.
The Japanese government called the test failure “extremely regrettable,” and Japan’s science minister, Keiko Nagaoka, apologized for failing.
Japan’s space program is a thriving industry that has made significant contributions to space exploration and technology. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is responsible for managing Japan’s space program and was established in 2003 after a merger of three institutions: the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), the National Aerospace Laboratory of Japan (NAL), and the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA).
Japan has been involved in space exploration since the 1960s when it launched its first scientific satellites. In 1970, Japan became the fourth country to launch a satellite into orbit. Since then, Japan has developed and launched numerous satellites for various purposes such as weather observation, earth observation, telecommunications, and scientific research.
One of Japan’s most significant contributions to space exploration is the Hayabusa spacecraft. Launched in 2003, Hayabusa’s mission was to study an asteroid called Itokawa. The spacecraft successfully landed on Itokawa in 2005 and returned to Earth with asteroid samples in 2010. Hayabusa’s mission was the first to return asteroid samples to Earth since NASA’s Apollo missions to the Moon.
Japan has also played a vital role in the International Space Station (ISS). The Kibo module, Japan’s primary contribution to the ISS, was launched in 2008. But remember The failed launch of Japan’s H3 rocket highlights the challenges of competing with the likes of Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Despite being presented as a cheaper alternative to SpaceX’s Falcon 9, the H3 rocket’s recent failures have set back Japan’s efforts to crack the market of launching commercial and government satellites into orbit. The setbacks are seen as a significant blow to Japan’s space program and its ambitions to become a key player in the industry. This highlights the importance of persistence and continued innovation in the face of setbacks and failures.
