Kairos (space rocket)

2024

Satellite rocket explosion explodes

On December 18, 2024, the Japanese private space company Space One launched a Kairos-2 rocket with five satellites. However, during the flight, problems arose, and the mission had to be interrupted.

Space One, headquartered in Tokyo, has been developing the Kairos rocket since 2018. The solid fuel three-stage carrier has a length of 18 m and a mass of approximately 23 tons.

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Фото: nhk.or.jp

The rocket launched from its own Space One site in Wakayama Prefecture on the Pacific coast of Honshu Island. In the case of launching satellites into orbit, this would be the first successful launch of spacecraft for Japan exclusively by private business. Satellite separation was supposed to take place 50 minutes after launch at an altitude of about 500 kilometers. However, according to the Japanese television and radio company NHK, it was not possible to put the payload into orbit.

It is said that after the separation of the first stage of the Kairos-2, problems arose, and Space One decided to terminate the mission. As a result, the rocket was blown up, and all five spacecraft were lost. The company is investigating the causes of the incident, but there is no information on what the failure is related to as of December 18, 2024.

The first launch of the Kairos media, carried out in March 2024, also failed. Then, a few seconds after the start, the power unit malfunctioned, and the rocket exploded. The accident lost a small satellite belonging to the Japanese Cabinet Office of Intelligence and Research, which is responsible for collecting, processing and analyzing national security information for the country's government. It was assumed that the spacecraft would replenish the Japanese orbital group leading the observation of North Korea.^[1]

Rocket explosion after launch

On March 13, 2024, the launch of Japan's first private rocket with a satellite, Space One's Kairos carrier, took place. The mission was unsuccessful, and the rocket exploded a few seconds after launch.

The 18-meter Kairos carrier was launched from the Space One launch pad in the Wakayama region of western Japan. The payload was a small government satellite weighing about 100 kg, designed to observe the Earth's surface. If successful, this would be the first launch of the spacecraft, fully carried out by the efforts of a private Japanese company.

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Фото: Space One

The Kairos explosion occurred approximately five seconds after launch. Space One, as of mid-March 2024, does not specify what exactly caused the accident. At the same time, the company emphasizes that the launch scheme is highly automated: only about ten specialists are required to perform all the necessary operations.

It is known that Kairos is equipped with a self-destruction system. It is triggered when errors are detected in the flight path, speed or control mechanisms. This is necessary to minimize possible risks endangering people or objects on the ground. The explosion of the rocket provoked a fire, but there were no casualties on the launch pad.

Space One was founded in 2018. Its investors include Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace Engineering, Shimizu and the Development Bank of Japan. Due to difficulties with the supply of certain components and other problems, Space One reportedly delayed the launch of Kairos five times. Space One does not disclose the cost of launching the Kairos rocket, but its chief executive, Kozo Abe, said the company is "quite competitive" with America's Rocket Lab.^[2]

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