Japan aborts launch of new rocket carrying missile sensor

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s space agency has aborted the inaugural launch of its next-generation H3 rocket after the auxiliary booster engines failed to ignite. Officials say the main engine of the rocket, which is carrying an observation satellite and an experimental sensor to detect missile launches, had already ignited when the launch was halted. They described it as an aborted launch — not a failure — because it was suspended as a result of safety features that functioned properly. Still, the unsuccessful launch was a setback for Japan’s space program, which suffered an earlier failed launch in October of a smaller rocket. The new H3 rocket was developed at a cost of $1.5 billion as a successor to Japan’s H-2A rocket.