Tokyo-

A rocket built by a Japanese company exploded shortly after launch on Wednesday, with public broadcaster NHK showing footage of the failed explosion.

Tokyo-based startup Space One has been aiming to become the first private Japanese company to successfully put a satellite into orbit.

Its 18-meter solid-fuel Kairos rocket launched from the startup’s own launch pad in Wakayama Prefecture in western Japan, carrying a small government test satellite.

But seconds after launch, the rocket suddenly exploded into a ball of fire, filling the launch pad area with black smoke.

When sprinklers began spraying water, burning debris fell onto the surrounding hillsides.

“The launch of the first Kairos rocket has been carried out, but we have taken steps to abort the flight,” Space One said in a statement, adding that “the details are under investigation.”

The failure marked a blow to Japan’s efforts to enter the lucrative satellite launch market.

The government wants to evaluate whether temporary small satellites can be quickly launched if existing spy satellites malfunction.

Kairos originally hoped to put the satellite into orbit around 51 minutes after launch.

Space One was founded in 2018 by a team of major Japanese technology companies, including Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace, Shimizu Construction Co. and the government-owned Japan Development Bank.

Last July, another Japanese rocket engine exploded during a test about 50 seconds after ignition.

The solid-fuel Epsilon S is an improved version of the Epsilon rocket that failed last October.

Its testing site in northern Akita prefecture was engulfed in flames, sending huge plumes of gray smoke into the sky.

The failure follows Tokyo’s second attempt to launch its next-generation H3 rocket in March 2023, which failed after liftoff.

Last month, Japan’s space agency celebrated the successful launch of its new flagship H3 rocket, after years of delays and two failed attempts.

H3 launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan, sparking cheers and applause at the JAXA control center.

It is considered a competitor to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and could one day deliver cargo to a lunar base.

Prior to this, Japan successfully landed an unmanned probe on the moon in January, albeit at an unstable angle, making it the fifth country to achieve a “soft landing” on the lunar surface.