Japan reschedules H3 rocket launch to March 6, after Feb. 17 abort

[March 03, 2023]  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's space agency said it plans to launch what would be its first new medium-lift rocket in three decades on March 6, more than two weeks after the initially scheduled launch was aborted.

A public relation officer of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) explains the launch failure of the H3 rocket to the media members at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan February 17, 2023, in this photo taken by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo via REUTERS

The final decision will be made taking into account weather conditions, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said on Friday.

JAXA on Feb. 17 suspended the launch of the H3 rocket, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, moments before the planned lift-off because its secondary booster engines failed to ignite.

Japan built the H3 to enhance its independent access to space and boost its chances of capturing a bigger share of the global launch market from rivals.

(Reporting by Kantaro Komiya and Miho Uranaka; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Christian Schmollinger)

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