“Kairos was launched (…) but we aborted the rocket’s flight after determining that it would be difficult to complete the mission,” Space One said in a statement.
The private Japanese company Space One announced this Wednesday that a new attempt to put a satellite into orbit had failed, minutes after takeoff.
“Kairos was launched (…) but we aborted the rocket’s flight after determining that it would be difficult to complete the mission,” Space One said in a statement.
Television images showed the rocket taking off from the tip of the Kii Peninsula, in Wakayama Prefecture (west), a mountainous and forested area. Kairos began to spiral downwards after sending the self-destruct signal.
No explosion was seen, unlike the first launch attempt in March, during which Kairos a few seconds after takeoff.
Last weekend, the postponed, on two consecutive days, two attempts to launch Kairos, due to unfavorable weather conditions.
Space One was founded in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese companies, including Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace, construction company Shimizu and the Development Bank of Japan, a state-owned financial institution.
Already this year, Japan has placed a becoming the fifth country to achieve a controlled landing on the lunar surface.
