Japan launches rocket, moon lander to study origins of the universe as global space race intensifies

Name: Japan launches rocket carrying moon lander to explore origins of the universe
Uploaded: 2023-09-07T01:22:13.000Z
Duration: 2 min 35 s
Description: Japan launches rocket carrying moon lander to explore origins of the universe

The launch of the HII-A rocket comes after recent setbacks in Japan’s space programme including the failed mission involving the H3 rocket

Japan’s space agency says the latest mission is aimed at studying the formation of celestial objects and the universe

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An HII-A rocket blasts off from the launch pad at Tanegashima Space Centre in Kagoshima, Japan on Thursday. Photo: AP

Associated Press

Published: 9:22am, 7 Sep 2023Updated: 5:46pm, 7 Sep 2023

Japan launched a rocket on Thursday carrying an X-ray telescope that will explore the origins of the universe as well as a small lunar lander.

The launch of the HII-A rocket from Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan was shown on live video by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, known as JAXA.

“We have a lift-off,” the narrator at JAXA said as the rocket flew up in a burst of smoke and flew over the Pacific.

The rocket will put into orbit around Earth a satellite called the X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission, or XRISM, which will measure the speed and make-up of what lies between galaxies.

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Japan launches rocket carrying moon lander to explore origins of the universe

That information helps in studying how celestial objects were formed, and hopefully can lead to solving the mystery of how the universe was created, JAXA said.