Japan’s fledgling H3 rocket achieved a successful launch on Monday local time, deploying the Advanced Land Observing Satellite-4 (ALOS-4) to a sun-synchronous orbit. This marks the third flight for the 187-foot-tall (57 meters) orbital launch vehicle, following a successful launch in February 2024 and a failed attempt in March 2023.
The two-stage hydrogen rocket, launched from the Tanegashima Space Center located about 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) southwest of Tokyo, is a crucial step for Japan’s space agency, JAXA. Their goal is to transform the H3 into a commercially viable launch vehicle that can effectively compete with players like SpaceX in the global launch market.
The H3, a product of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, has been in development for nearly a decade, costing approximately 220 billion yen ($1.3 billion). It is a successor to the H2A, which has seen only one failure in its 48 launches since its first flight in 2001. The H3 generates 1.6 million pounds of thrust at launch, comparable in power to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.
JAXA aims to launch the H3 six times annually for the next 20 years, deploying satellites for both government and commercial entities. They currently have 26 upcoming missions listed, although launch dates remain undetermined.
The 3-ton ALOS-4 satellite, deployed by the H3 rocket on Monday, will replace the aging ALOS-2, which has been in orbit since 2014. This successful launch highlights Japan’s commitment to space exploration and its ambitions to play a prominent role in the burgeoning commercial space industry.
