Japan's first private-sector rocket launch attempt has exploded shortly after takeoff
Tokyo (AP/PTI): A rocket touted as Japan's first from the private sector to go into orbit exploded shortly after takeoff Wednesday, livestreamed video showed.
Online video showed the rocket called Kairos blasting off from Wakayama Prefecture, central Japan, a mountainous area filled with trees, but exploding midair within seconds.
A huge plume of smoke engulfed the area, and flames shot up in some spots. The video then showed spurts of water shot toward that spot in an effort to put out the blaze.
Tokyo-based startup Space One, behind the rocket launch, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The launch was already delayed several times, with the last postponement coming Saturday, after a ship was spotted in a risk area, according to Japanese media reports.
If it had succeeded, Space One would have been the first private company to put a rocket into orbit.
Tokyo-based Space One was set up in 2018, with investments from major Japanese companies, including Canon Electronics, IHI, Shimizu and major banks.
There was no immediate reports of injuries or other damage.
Japan's main space exploration effort is led by the government's NASDA, which stands for The National Space Development Agency of Japan, this nation's equivalent of NASA of the US.
BREAKING: Space One rocket explodes during launch from southern Japan pic.twitter.com/8IWiu2bRKa
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Telangana rains: Four farmers dead, three injured as sheds collapse in Mancherial
Karimnagar (Telangana) (PTI): Four farmers died, and three others were injured after tin-roofed sheds and dilapidated structures collapsed in two separate incidents in Mancherial district of Telangana, officials said on Wednesday.
The incidents occurred in two villages of Luxettipet mandal late on Tuesday night, when the farmers were taking shelter in the structures following heavy rain and strong winds.
According to officials, two people died when a shed caved in at Kothuru village.
In a separate incident in Gampalapalli village, two more persons died after another structure collapsed, police and district authorities said.
The three injured were shifted to a hospital in Karimnagar for treatment, police said.
Preliminary reports indicate that unseasonal rains accompanied by strong winds weakened the structures, leading to the collapses.
Authorities are assessing the situation, and further investigation is underway.
