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October 27, 2025
 

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ROCKETS

The failed launch of a small rocket by Tokyo-based startup Space One is seen at the Spaceport Kii site in Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, in this screenshot taken from an online broadcast on March 13.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 14, 2024
Japanese firm delays bid to be first to put a satellite into orbit
This delay comes after the failure of its first rocket, which erupted into flames just seconds after liftoff earlier this spring.
The Epsilon S rocket exploded during a combustion test at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on Nov. 26.
JAPAN
Dec 6, 2024
JAXA says first Epsilon rocket unlikely to launch by March
JAXA Vice President Masashi Okada said he thinks it "technically difficult to a large degree" for the small satellite launch vehicle to lift off by the end of March.
An image of active and defunct satellites in low Earth Orbit is seen on a Digantara terminal in Bengaluru, India, on Nov. 22.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024
Global push for cooperation as space traffic crowds Earth's orbit
A United Nations panel on space traffic coordination called for a shared database of orbital objects as well as an international framework to track and manage them.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency has halted an engine combustion test of its Epsilon S rocket at its Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 26, 2024
Japan's space agency halts Epsilon S rocket engine test after fire
Footage showed a blaze breaking out shortly after the ground combustion test started at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture.
A Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency H3 rocket carrying a defense communication satellite is successfully launched Monday from the Tanegashima Space Center launch site in Kagoshima Prefecture.
JAPAN
Nov 4, 2024
Fifth time’s a charm as H3 rocket puts defense satellite in orbit
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency successfully launched the defense communication satellite, after four earlier launch dates were postponed.
(Right to left) Astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze attend a see-off ceremony before taking part in the Shenzhou-19 spaceflight mission to China's Tiangong space station, at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Oct 30, 2024
Chinese astronauts to test lunar bricks in space
Should the tests prove successful, the bricks could be a key material used in the construction of a permanent lunar research station.
India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk III-M1 blasts off carrying Chandrayaan-2, from the Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota, India, on July 22, 2019.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 14, 2024
India creates space strategy to capture market beyond SpaceX
At stake is a launch market worth $14.54 billion by 2031.
Starship's Super Heavy Booster is grappled at the launch pad in Starbase near Boca Chica, Texas, on Sunday, during the Starship Flight 5 test.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 14, 2024
SpaceX captures booster rocket in step toward Musk’s Mars dream
The successful test underscores the astonishing progress SpaceX is making with its launch capabilities.
The H3 rocket, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, lifts off from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on Feb. 17.
BUSINESS
Sep 18, 2024
Mitsubishi to provide H3 rockets for France's Eutelsat from 2027
The deal is a major overseas win for Japan's ¥220 billion ($1.55 billion) state-backed H3 rocket project.
An H2A rocket carrying an information gathering satellite is launched from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture in January. The latest launch of the rocket has been delayed for a second time.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 2024
Mitsubishi Heavy cancels H2A rocket launch for the second time
Unsafe upper-level winds were behind the latest delay.
Ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada speaks during a news conference in Tokyo in April 2023, after the firm's first attempt to land on the moon failed.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 12, 2024
Ispace aims for December launch of second moon landing mission
The Hakuto-R Mission 2 spacecraft will be delivered by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida and attempt a lunar touchdown after four to five months of spaceflight.
Space One President Masakazu Toyoda speaks at a news conference on March 13 following the failure of the firm's rocket launch in Wakayama Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2024
Space One planning launch of second unit of satellite-carrying rocket
The firm's No. 1 Kairos rocket was launched on March 13, but exploded five seconds later.
In this NASA handout, a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft onboard at Space Launch Complex 41 ahead of a test flight at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida in July 2021.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2024
Boeing's CEO faces hard choices after NASA snubs Starliner for SpaceX
The specter of NASA astronauts being stuck in space is just one embarrassing moment of many for Boeing during an epically bad year.
The Kestrel I Suborbital Launch Vehicle, operated by AtSpace, sister company of Taiwanese rocket startup TiSpace, at an AtSpace facility in Queensland, Australia, on Tuesday
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Jul 25, 2024
Taiwanese rocket startup may bolster Japan's space hub ambitions
A planned launch has faced regulatory hurdles and delays amid questions over whether Japan should embrace overseas business as it works to grow its space industry.
A conceptual design of a potential Hokkaido Spaceport (HOSPO). HOSPO is aiming to become one of Japan’s major domestic spaceports for launching satellite-equipped rockets and spacecraft as well as for the aerospace industry to conduct research and development.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jul 22, 2024
Small Hokkaido town looks to the stars for future growth
Taiki, population 5,300, is home to what is billed as Asia’s first privately operated spaceport — Hokkaido Spaceport.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 is pictured in space after it lifted off from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, in this screenshot from video released on Friday.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jul 13, 2024
SpaceX's Falcon 9 grounded after failure dooms batch of Starlink satellites
The incident marks the first failure in more than seven years of a rocket relied upon by the global space industry.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore (right) and Suni Williams pose ahead of the launch of Boeing's Starliner-1 Crew Flight Test, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on April 25.
WORLD
Jul 11, 2024
NASA astronauts are confident Boeing's Starliner will bring them home
Several issues with Starliner's propulsion system have extended the astronauts' mission indefinitely.
Europe's Ariane 6 rocket takes off in Kourou, French Guiana, on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 10, 2024
Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket goes retro in challenge to SpaceX
Reusable rockets and frequent launches "were once aspirational but are now minimal requirements" to compete commercially, said the Rocket Lab CEO and founder.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's new flagship H3 rocket is launched from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on Monday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 1, 2024
Japan successfully puts advanced satellite into orbit using H3 rocket
The agency’s third H3 rocket launch was carrying the high-resolution Daichi-4 Earth observation satellite, which cost around ¥32 billion to develop.
A Starliner spacecraft sits atop an Atlas V rocket for a test flight in 2021.
WORLD
Jun 2, 2024
Boeing’s long-awaited crewed mission aborted just before liftoff
The next launch opportunities are June 5 and June 6, NASA said in a blog post.
Bear kills another person in Japan in record year for fatal attacks
Police investigate the scene of a bear attack that killed one person and injured three others on Friday in the village of Higashinaruse in Akita Prefecture.
Tokyo launches English-language international school database
A screenshot of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's international schools portal site
Strong quake shakes Hokkaido as authorities urge vigilance
Kunashiri Island is seen across the Nemuro Strait, just before sunrise from Rausu, Hokkaido. A strong earthquake struck the area at a depth of about 40 kilometers early Saturday.
New tourism minister calls concentration of tourists in certain areas 'very serious'
Tourism minister Yasushi Kaneko holds a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Florian Wiltschko: ‘Shinto helps me understand and live within Japanese culture’
Florian Wiltschko’s interest in Shintoism began with a trip to Japan in his teens. He now serves as the supplicant priest at the 355-year-old Hisai Hachiman Shrine in Mie Prefecture.
Loss to Wallabies doesn't dampen Japan’s optimism
Japan's Michael Leitch controls the ball during the match against Australia on Saturday.
Stars align for Kim-Trump meeting — but any talks will be on N.K. leader’s terms
A South Korean soldier stands next to a TV broadcasting a news report about a possible summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, at the main railway station in Seoul on Wednesday.
New ‘immigration minister’ post signals Takaichi Cabinet’s priorities
Kimi Onoda, economic security minister and minister for harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, arrives at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Number of suicide cases among students in Japan hits record high in 2024
The health ministry's Suicide White Paper for 2024 has found that numbers for both men and women peak at age 21, with “concerns over future career paths” being identified as the most likely cause.
The newly formed LDP-JIP coalition may not be as solid as it seems
Ruling Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi and Japan Innovation Party leader Hirofumi Yoshimura sign a policy agreement between the two parties at the Diet in Tokyo on Monday.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.
By Thu-Huong Ha and Mike Fu

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