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First Japanese commercial rocket explodes immediately after launch

The rocket fragments fell into the mountains next to the launch site

© Sergey Savostyanov/TASS

TOKYO, March 13. /TASS/. The launch of the first commercial Japanese rocket, carried out by Space One, was a failure. The rocket exploded several seconds after the launch.

The rocket fragments fell into the mountains next to the launch site. The live stream shows a massive fire breaking out at their fall area, with a pillar of thick smoke. The cause of the failure is currently unknown.

The rocket carried a 100-kg governmental satellite for observation of Earth surface. In case of success, this would have become the first satellite launch, carried out entirely by a private Japanese company.

The Kairos rocket was 18 meters long and weighed about 23 tons. Space One, which has its headquarters in Tokyo, has been designing it since 2018. The company also built is own launch site in the Wakayama prefecture.

Previously, the Japanese Minister in Charge of Economic Security Sanae Takaichi said that Japan would like to reach the figure of 30 rocket launches per year by the first half of the 2030s, which would include commercial launches.

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