Rocket explodes moments after Japan space startup’s launch

SPACE One, a Japanese startup backed by Canon, failed to send its first rocket to space, a major setback in efforts to join a booming market for commercial launches.

The lightweight Kairos rocket exploded in flames just seconds after taking off around 11 am on Wednesday (Mar 13) morning local time from Space Port Kii, about 420 kilometres southwest of Tokyo. Live footage showed a plume of smoke surrounding the fiery wreckage, which was extinguished soon after.

A self-destruct order was sent shortly after launch, Space One said It did not immediately offer details on the problems with the flight.

Canon Electronics shares dropped 13 per cent immediately after the explosion to its lowest level in 13 years.

Kairos, which in ancient Greek means “the right moment”, was carrying a government satellite, according to Space One.

The launch was scheduled for Mar 9 but operators were forced to delay it after a vessel was found offshore in what was supposed to be an evacuated area.

The company, founded in 2018, is supported by investors including Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace Engineering, real estate contractor Shimizu and the Development Bank of Japan. Previous launches were delayed by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, according to chief executive officer Masakazu Toyoda.

At 18 metres, the Kairos is shorter than the Japanese national space agency’s 24-metre-tall Epsilon and the 63-metre-tall H3, which Jaxa launched in February.

Still, the size of Kairos should help it fill a niche in the local market by offering competitive prices and frequent missions, Toyoda told reporters on Mar 1.

Space Port Kii is the nation’s first launch complex for commercial missions, offering companies an alternative to the site that JAXA uses in southern Japan. BLOOMBERG