TOKYO: The Japanese government’s information-gathering satellite “Optical-8” was carried by an H-IIA rocket launched by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the company announced in a social media post on Friday.
With this launch, Japan’s premier rocket has launched 48 times since 2001, raising its success rate to 97.92%. The rocket is built by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
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Japan has been having trouble making the switch since JAXA’s maiden test launch failed in March of last year. The country intends to retire H-IIA after two more launches and replace it with H3. The second test launch of the H3 is scheduled for February 15.
