Government officials pledged efforts Tuesday to rebuild Japan's space program in the wake of Monday's failure of the launch of an H-II rocket carrying a multipurpose satellite.
Science and Technology Agency chief Hirofumi Nakasone promised a full-scale probe into the cause of the failure, which cost the government 34 billion yen.
Nakasone, back in Tokyo after observing the ill-fated launch at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, also indicated the current system of pursuing space development under the National Space Development Agency of Japan should be fundamentally reviewed.