Japan Launches Smallest Rocket to Carry Satellite into Orbit
At around 2 p.m. on Feb. 3, KST, Japan launched the experimental SS-520 Unit 5 rocket against a northwest wind of 3 meters per second and at an air temperature of 7 degrees Celsius. It was launched from the Uchinoura Space Observatory.
According to the announcement from Japan's National Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the launch, which was a demonstration experiment, happened as planned and successfully separated the ultra-small TRICOM-1R (Trichom One Ear) satellite into orbit, 7 minutes and 30 seconds into the flight.
TRICOM-1R is a three-unit cubesat with a length of only 13.6 inches, which is why a very small rocket was used to bring it into lower Earth orbit. It came with a set of cameras that should help it observe the Earth from here. JAXA said the satellites status is normal.
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The successful launch of SS-520 Unit 5 comes a year after Japan's first tiny rocket, SS-520-4, failed to reach orbit. The latter was carrying a 6.6 pound TRICOM-1. The take-off of that first rocket was successful enough, but miscommunication among flight controllers pushed them to abort the mission. SS-520-4 ended up in the ocean, instead of outer space.
Its recent success, however, is a huge step into the small rocket industries. With small rockets designed to carry small payloads now capable of making it into orbit, the future is bright for small companies that could not afford hitching a ride for their small packages in the huge rockets of SpaceX and United Launch Alliance.
While Japan's rocket is so far the smallest, it is not the only one trying to cut the cost for this industry. Just last month, New Zealand's Rocket Lab also successfully launched its first small Electron rocket into orbit, deploying three small satellites in the process. The launch was groundbreaking, as it was only the second for the start-up company, but was already successful.
