Completion of the International Space Station will be delayed. This is because a lack of the relevant budget of the Japanese government will cause a delay of at least a year in the launch of the research component - the size of a bus - which is being built in Japan for the purpose of the project
14.9.2002
The new Japanese missile H-2A in a previous flight
Completion of the International Space Station will be delayed. This is because a lack of the relevant budget of the Japanese government will cause a delay of at least a year in the launch of the research component - the size of a bus - which is being built in Japan for the purpose of the project. The research capsule, which is the only component of the space station that will be operated by an Asian country, was planned to be launched in 2004, and is now planned for April 2005 at the earliest. This is what the Japanese space agency NASA and NASA said in a joint statement.
The component, known as "kibu", the Japanese word for hope, parts of which have already been assembled is in a hangar outside Tokyo. A horizontal cut in the British government's budget prevented the budgets needed to complete the final experiment, the final construction of the hardware and equipment for the purpose of performing the experiments, as well as to pay salaries to NASA's technicians. This was stated by the deputy director of the agency, Yoichi Yamura. "Kibu's users will be disappointed," Yamura said, "but if we keep to the planned schedule, we will need more money than our budget allows."
Yamura stated that compared to a budget of 7 billion yen in 2002 (58 million dollars) - this year's budget will be only 5 or at most 6 billion yen (42-50 million dollars).
An external committee calls for the component to be launched without all its parts, so that it can perform most of its tasks, but without delay. The component, whose total cost is 500 billion yen ($4.2 billion) is a key component to carry out the scientific missions of the space station. It has been under construction since 1985. According to Yamura, it is too early to know if the delay in launching Kibo will harm the overall functioning of the station, or if NASA will cover the costs from its own money.
The component, which as mentioned is the size of a bus, has a pressure chamber with room for four astronauts to carry out experiments. It is also equipped with a 10-meter-long independent robotic arm capable of carrying experiments to an external platform exposed to the vacuum of space. Kibu appears to be a bright spot in Japan's faltering space program.
The history of mechanical failures and two missiles that exploded were only recently replaced by two successful launches of the H-2A missile - the next generation of Japanese missiles that was launched last Tuesday (see news below).
Japan has been suffering from an economic recession for over a decade and the government has reduced annual spending on space from 180 billion yen per year ($1.5 billion) to 148 billion yen ($1.2 billion).
Japan has launched a new generation of rocket into space
11/9/2002
After a successful launch, Japan's new generation of rockets put several satellites into orbit for the first time. This symbolizes what the senior officials at the Japanese Space Agency (NASDA) in Tokyo call - a big step towards entering the commercial launch business of satellites.
The rocket, which is 57 meters long, carried two satellites - a satellite to test a recovery system, and a satellite that will collect data on Earth and transmit it. The missile was launched from Tangashima, about a thousand kilometers southwest of Tokyo, on Tuesday at 8:17 a.m. GMT (20:XNUMX p.m. local time).
Japan launched its first H-2A rocket without a booster in August 2001, but when it launched the second satellite in the series in February, it failed to place a test satellite in space.
The smooth launch of the latest version of the home-made rocket is crucial to the future of Japan's space program, which critics blame as a one-off expense and a series of setbacks.
The cost of manufacturing a rocket for launch was about 86 million dollars (10.2 billion yen), officials at the Japanese Space Agency said.
The data satellite cost 31.8 billion yen, and the second satellite - for recovery from malfunctions - cost 20 billion.
The Japanese space agency suffered heavy losses when in 1999 it lost a prototype satellite worth 10 billion yen and an unsuccessful launch cost it 60 billion yen.
The H-2A launcher is supposed to compete in the global commercial market, which is currently dominated by the European company Ariane, followed by the US, China and Russia.
Japan is now seeking to regain confidence in the safety of its launch vehicles.
In May 2000, satellite manufacturer Hughes, which had agreed to use Japanese satellites to launch 10 satellites, canceled the contract because it lost confidence in Japan's space technology.
The Japanese government plans to privatize the H-2A satellite business in 2005. The Japanese Ministry of Science and Technology is expected to decide in November to transfer missile production to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, government officials said. This will allow the company, one of the largest in Japan, to also enter the field of space, including the production of missiles and satellite launchers.
