MISSION NAME
SFU & Himawari 5 5
Status
Success
DATE
18 MAR 1995
LAUNCH PROVIDER
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
Launch Pad
Yoshinobu Launch Complex LP-1
Description
SFU (Space Flyer Unit) was a Japanese space laboratory launched by the same H-2 + SSB rocket that launched GMS 5. It carried an infrared telescope (IRTS), and instruments and supplies for microgravity experiments. Himawari 5 was a Japanese geostationary meteorological satellite built by Hughes Space and Communications.
H-II
Rocket Description
The H-II rocket was a Japanese satellite launch system which flew seven times between 1994 and 1999 with 5 successes. It was developed by NASDA in order to give Japan a capability to launch larger satellites in the 1990s. It was the first two stage liquid fuelled rocket Japan made using only domestic technologies.