Japan Prepares for Crucial Rocket Launch

TOKYO (AP) -- Grounded for more than a year, Japan's space agency has begun the countdown to launch its domestically built H2-A rocket later this month - a high-stakes move officials hope will reopen the way for everything from putting spy satellites in orbit to moving ahead with ambitious scientific missions.

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Japan launched its first rocket in 1970, and is one of the very select group of nations that have succeeded in sending a probe to the moon. It is planning the biggest moon mission since the U.S. Apollo project, and sending probes to Venus and Mercury.

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The Japanese H-2A rocket returned to space today with its long-awaited mission to launch a multi-purpose satellite to serve pilots and weather forecasters throughout Asia and the Pacific. The crucial resumption of launches came 15 months after a painful failure that added to the woes that country's space program encountered in recent years.

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Today's flight was the first for Japan's heavy-lift vehicle since a launch in November 2003 ended in a failure when one of the rocket's solid boosters did not jettison as expected after completing its burn. An investigation in the months following found that the booster's nozzle suffered a burn-through, which caused the failure of the device responsible for sending the separation signal to explosive bolts.

Lost in the botched attempt were the second pair of four spy satellites Japan ordered built after North Korea fired a missile into Japanese territory in 1998. The accident left Japan with just one optical and one radar sounding satellite to keep tabs on its threatening neighbor.

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Tokyo sent its first two spy satellites into space in March as part of a $2 billion surveillance project to keep watch on North Korea's missile and nuclear programs. The move prompted protests from Pyongyang, which warned Tokyo against triggering a regional arms race.

Japanese officials say the program was prompted by North Korea's surprise test launch of a long-range missile over Japan's main island in 1998.

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