Japans new rocket fails after engine issue in blow to space ambitions

TOKYO – Japans new medium-lift rocket failed on its debut flight in space on Tuesday after the launchers second-stage engine did not ignite as planned, in a blow to its efforts to cut the cost of accessing space and compete against Mr Elon Musks SpaceX.

The 57m-tall H3 rocket, Japans first new model in three decades, lifted off without a hitch from the Tanegashima space port, a live-streamed broadcast by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) showed.

But upon reaching space, the rockets second-stage engine failed to ignite, forcing mission officials to manually destroy the vehicle 14 minutes into the flight.

It was decided the rocket could not complete its mission, so the destruct command was sent, Jaxa said in a statement.

The failed attempt followed an aborted launch in February, and the debris would have fallen into the ocean east of the Philippines, Jaxa said.

Science and Technology Minister Keiko Nagaoka said in a statement that the government had established a task force to investigate the very regrettable failure.

This will have a serious impact on Japans future space policy, space business and technological competitiveness, said Dr Hirotaka Watanabe, a professor at Osaka University with expertise in space policy.

The H3 was carrying the Alos-3, a disaster management land observation satellite, which was also equipped with an experimental infrared sensor designed to detect North Korean ballistic missile launches.

The H3 is extremely important to ensure our access to space and to ensure we are competitive, Jaxa president Hiroshi Yamakawa told reporters. Jaxas goal of fielding a competitive launcher was unchanged, he added.

H3 builder Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd (MHI) said it was confirming the situation surrounding the rocket with Jaxa and did not have an immediate comment.

MHI has estimated that the H3s cost per launch will be half that of its predecessor, the H-II, helping it win business in a global launch market increasingly dominated by SpaceXs reusable Falcon 9 rocket.

A company spokesman said earlier that it was also relying on the reliability of Japans previous rockets to gain business.

In a report published in September, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies think-tank put the cost of a Falcon 9 launch to low Earth orbit at US$2,600 (S$3,495) per kg. The equivalent price tag for the H-II is US$10,500.

A successful launch on Tuesday would have put the Japanese rocket into space ahead of the planned launch later in 2023 of the European Space Agencys new lower-cost Ariane 6 vehicle.

Powered by a new simpler, lower-cost engine that includes 3D-printed parts, the H3 is designed to lift government and commercial satellites into Earth orbit and will ferry supplies to the International Space Station.

As part of Japans deepening cooperation with the United States in space, it will also eventually carry cargo to the Lunar Gateway space station that the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration plans to build as part of its programme to return people to the moon, including Japanese astronauts.

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