Japan successfully launches H3 rocket carrying next-generation cargo craft to ISS
Tokyo: The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has successfully launched its H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan, on Sunday. The mission transported the newly developed unmanned cargo spacecraft, HTV-X1, on its first trip to deliver supplies to the International Space Station and is expected to arrive at the ISS in a few days.
According to an Associated Press report, the spacecraft was placed in its assigned orbit after 14 minutes of its launch and the HTV-X1 was later separated as planned. Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, who is currently aboard the International Space Station, will use a robotic arm to grasp the spacecraft early Thursday.
The HTV-X1 is the successor to JAXA's previous unmanned supply vehicle, Kounotori, the H-II Transfer Vehicle. It completed nine successful missions between 2009 and 2020. This new vehicle can carry a larger payload and still generating electricity during transit. It will also allow it to transport temperature-sensitive laboratory materials.
It is designed to remain docked at the ISS for up to six months. The HTV-X1 will deliver cargo, collect waste, and later conduct independent orbital missions for an additional three months after departing the station.
Iwao Igarashi who heads the Space Business Department at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries—which co-developed and operates the H3 with JAXA—said that the successful launch demonstrated Japan’s reliability and precision in space missions. He further added that Mitsubishi plans to expand its launch operations to meet growing global demand, as reported by Associated Press.
The H3 replaces Japan’s long-serving H-2A rocket, which completed its final flight in June. The latest launch was the seventh overall and the sixth consecutive success since a failed debut in 2023, when the rocket was destroyed mid-flight after a malfunction.
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All you need to know about India’s first Sunday Budget
New Delhi: This year’s Budget is drawing special attention because it is being presented on a Sunday. While Sunday is normally a holiday, Parliament will function as usual for the Budget presentation.
India's Union Budget is presented on February 1 each year, a practice that began in 2017. The idea behind this change was to give Parliament enough time to discuss, approve and put Budget proposals into action before the new financial year begins on April 1. Earlier, Budgets were usually presented at the end of February.
A similar situation arose in 1999, when February 28 fell on a Sunday. To avoid presenting the Budget on a holiday, then Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, under the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government, presented it a day earlier on February 27, a Saturday.
Until 1999, Union Budgets were presented in the evening, around 5 pm. This practice came from British colonial times, when announcements were timed to suit working hours in London.
Yashwant Sinha changed this tradition by presenting the Budget at 11 am. Since then, 11 am has remained the standard time for Budget presentations in India.
