Japan Destroys Rocket Shortly After Launch
Japan’s ambitions to become a world leader in aerospace technology were dealt a major setback Monday when engine trouble forced officials to blow up a rocket carrying a $95-million satellite just minutes after launch.
It was the second time this year that problems with the H-2 rocket, the key to Japan’s satellite program, failed to put the MTSAT satellite into orbit. Another H-2 rocket failed to get its payload into orbit in February.
The rocket, which carried a weather and aircraft monitoring satellite, lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center, 650 miles southwest of Tokyo.
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