Japan, using its new flagship H3 rocket, placed a satellite on orbit with the aim of speedier operations and communication. The successful launch in November 2024 came as the country seeks to boost its defense capability amid growing tension in the region.
Tokyo is accelerating its defense buildup under a 2022 security strategy that calls for troops to play a greater regional role amid rising tension from the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea and Russia.
The H3 No. 4 rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center on a southwestern Japanese island. Everything went as planned and the satellite was successfully put into a targeted orbit, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced.
The rocket was carrying Kirameki No. 3, a defense ministry satellite that uses X-band communication for information and data sharing, as well as defense operations and command.
X-band satellites are less affected by weather conditions and can support stable communication. Kirameki No. 3 follows two earlier X-band satellites already in operation to meet Japan’s growing defense communication demands and enhance its satellite operations.
Maj. Gen. Yasuhiro Kato, the Joint Staff Systems Department chief, told an online news conference from Tanegashima that the triple X-band communication satellite system would enable high-speed, large-capacity data transmission and communication across Japan’s Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces, as well as with units deployed overseas on peacekeeping missions or exercises.
“It will further contribute to Japan’s national security and the operational capacity of the Self-Defense Forces,” Kato said.
Ippei Kikuta, a defense ministry acquisition agency official, said after undergoing testing Kirameki No. 3 will join two other X-band satellites, Kirameki No. 1 and No. 2, which are in undisclosed orbits.