Japan’s 1st Privately Owned Rocket Kairos Reached Space For The 1st Time
Japanese startup Space One has made a second attempt to launch Japan’s first privately owned rocket, Kairos.
The debut flight of KAIROS took place in March 2024. Then, the rocket was automatically detonated just a few seconds after the start of the flight due to the fact that its speed and engine thrust were less than the set parameters.
The second launch of KAIROS was postponed several times. It finally took place on December 18. The rocket lifted off from the launch pad and began to gain altitude. As eyewitness videos show, at about the 95th second of the flight, shortly before the separation of the first stage, KAIROS lost control and began to spin. After that, for safety reasons, the rocket was automatically detonated.
Space One says it has figured out what went wrong with the March launch that lost a military spy satellite. That launch involved a design error in the first-stage rocket engine. With the flight lasting three minutes longer today, the first-stage engine is clearly better, though it will again be blamed for the failure. At 100 kilometers, the rocket spiraled off course and had to be blown up. Five small satellites were lost, including one made in Taiwan.
