Space One launched a rocket that would have made the company Japan's first-ever private firm to put a satellite into orbit, but the rocket exploded seconds into its ascent.
A Japanese rocket was intentionally exploded seconds after launching Wednesday morning. Space One, a company offering space courier services to its clients, planned to be Japan's first private firm to put a satellite into orbit with the launch of the 59-foot-tall Kairos spacecraft from the Kii Peninsula. But about five seconds after takeoff, the rocket was detonated, leading to a raging fire, scattered debris and a plume of smoke engulfing the skies.
We don't use the world 'failure,' because each trial brings us ... new data and experience for another challenge,' Toyoda said at the news conference. He said space travel takes multiple failures before success. The Japanese rocket carried an experimental government satellite that could replace existing intelligence satellites in orbit if they malfunctioned, Reuters reported.
The Kairos rocket was supposed to launch last Saturday but was postponed after a ship entered an area restricted for takeoff. Space One was established in 2018. The Tokyo-based company eventually hopes to offer space services and travel.
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