Tag: Japan
-
Rocket Lab Books Three More Electron Launches for Japan’s iQPS, Third Deal in Under a Year
The contract continues iQPS’ build out of its Earth-imaging constellation using synthetic aperture radar, a technology that creates images from radio wave measurements and allows data collection at any time of day and under any weather conditions. Rocket Lab has served as iQPS’ primary launch provider since 2023. The three new dedicated launches are scheduled…
-
Rocket Report: Lightning strikes in China; Starship launch on deck
Welcome to Edition 9.04 of the Rocket Report! We’ve had to wait an extra week for SpaceX to get its 13th Starship test flight off the ground. A last-second abort on July 16 led engineers to roll the booster back to its hangar in South Texas to swap out engines. Starship is now back on…
-
JAXA RV-X Completes 10m Hop Test at Noshiro
Did JAXA Just Fly Japan’s First Reusable Rocket Prototype? JAXA’s RV-X experimental vehicle lifted 10 meters off a concrete pad at the Noshiro test facility on July 11, 2026 — a 40-second hop that marks Japan’s first successful flight of a reusable rocket prototype. The 7.3-meter-tall, single-engine vehicle rose just over 10 meters, translated approximately…
-
D-Orbit Lands ArkEdge Space SSO Contract for 2027-2028
Is D-Orbit’s ION the Logistics Backbone for Japan’s Small-Satellite Sector? D-Orbit’s ION Satellite Carrier will deploy ArkEdge Space microsatellites to sun-synchronous orbit across multiple missions in 2027 and 2028, under a contract announced July 8 in Japan — a deal D-Orbit’s Orbital Access Business Unit director Matteo Andreas Lorenzoni called "one of the most significant…
-
Japan’s Veteran Hayabusa2 Enters Planetary Defense Role With Asteroid Flyby
Hayabusa2 finished its primary mission in 2020, when it returned samples from the asteroid Ryugu to Earth. Rather than retiring the spacecraft after that success, Japan has directed it toward a new objective focused on asteroid threat assessment. The July 5 flyby targeted a near-Earth asteroid whose name was not specified in available information. The…
-
MDA Space Wins Contract for Japan’s Next-Generation Defense Communications Satellite
MDA Space has secured a contract from Mitsubishi Electric Corporation to provide key technologies for Japan’s next-generation defense communications satellite, which will replace the country’s Kirameki-2 military communications satellite. Under the agreement, the Canadian space technology company will supply the satellite’s digital payload, antennas and a range of subsystems. Financial terms of the contract were…
-
Japan Nears Decision on $2 Billion Domestic Direct-to-Device Satellite Network
Japan is expected to select a proposal this month for its planned J-LEO direct-to-device (D2D) satellite network, a government-backed initiative aimed at establishing a domestically owned and operated low Earth orbit (LEO) communications system. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) has allocated approximately $1 billion in subsidies for the project, covering up to…
-
ESA Reviews Future of Gateway Contributions Following NASA Program Pause
The European Space Agency (ESA) is evaluating the future of its planned contributions to NASA’s Gateway lunar space station following changes to the Artemis programme that have placed the station’s development on hold. ESA officials said the agency intends to continue work on several Gateway-related projects while examining how the technologies could be adapted for…
-
Japanese Reentry Startup ElevationSpace Raises $40 Million Series B to Expand Global Operations
Japanese space technology startup ElevationSpace has raised $40 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total funding to approximately $63.5 million as the company advances its satellite reentry and space transportation technologies. The latest round included participation from existing investors SPARX Asset Management and Beyond Next Ventures, alongside several corporate investors, including automotive…
-
Japan’s H3 to returns to flight with debut launch of lightest configuration
Japan’s H3 rocket successfully returned to flight Friday, with a launch that also marked the debut of a new configuration, optimized for smaller payloads. Liftoff took place at 00:53 UTC (9:53 a.m. local time) from the Tanegashima Space Center. Friday’s launch was the eighth flight of the H3, and its first since a failure last…