Japan launches HTVX1 cargo freighter to ISS on H3 rocket

Japan launched its new HTVX cargo spacecraft atop an H3 rocket late Oct. 25 Eastern time (Oct. 26 Japan time) from the Tanegashima Space Center, and the vehicle was captured and berthed to the International Space Station in the small hours of Thursday Japan time, officials said. The mission marks the first flight of the upgraded HTVX freighter and the first operational flight of the H3 rocket in its H324W configuration carrying a station resupply module.

The H3 lifted off with two main first-stage engines, four solid rocket boosters and a wide payload fairing. The HTVX1 spacecraft separated from the rocket upper stage about 14 minutes after liftoff and deployed its solar arrays shortly thereafter, JAXA said. Several days into the mission the station’s robotic arm reached out to grasp the vehicle; Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui radioed, "HTV capture complete," and later described the arrival as a historic moment for Japan’s space program.

HTVX is an upgraded successor to the HII Transfer Vehicle, known as Kounotori, which flew nine missions to the station between 2009 and 2020. The new freighter can carry about six metric tons of cargo, roughly 1.5 times the capacity of its...