SHOVEL
A Japanese space rocket exploded after liftoff on Tuesday, turning the sky into a fireball of smoke and debris on live TV broadcast.
The 59-foot Space One Kairos spacecraft lifted off from a platform on the Kii Peninsula in western Japan on Wednesday, but exploded moments after being launched.
Local media broadcast live the inaugural event of Space One, a start-up trying to become the country’s first private company to put a satellite into orbit.
Check out the video… the 23-ton solid-fuel rocket lifted off the launch pad, leaving a huge cloud of white smoke in its wake as it traveled into the cosmos. Suddenly, the ship intentionally detonated, turning into flaming wreckage falling to the ground.
The president of Space One said: “the rocket ended the flight after judging that carrying out its mission would be difficult.”
Space One is now investigating flight data to determine what went wrong. It is not yet clear whether anyone was killed or injured, but so far no injuries have been reported.
There are typically no people on the platforms during launch, but the company said the launch requires about 12 employees at the ground control center.
We’ll keep you posted as soon as we have an update.