H-IIA

H-IIA

H-IIA

Expendable medium-lift launch vehicle

For other uses, see H2A (disambiguation).

H-IIA (H-2A) is an active expendable launch system operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. These liquid fuel rockets have been used to launch satellites into geostationary orbit; lunar orbiting spacecraft; Akatsuki, which studied the planet Venus; and the Emirates Mars Mission, which was launched to Mars in July 2020. Launches occur at the Tanegashima Space Center. The H-IIA first flew in 2001. As of February 2024, H-IIA rockets were launched 48 times, including 42 consecutive missions without a failure, dating back to 29 November 2003.

Quick Facts Function, Manufacturer ...
The Liftoff of H-IIA Flight 19
The H-IIA rocket lineup
The H-IIA

Production and management of the H-IIA shifted from JAXA to MHI on 1 April 2007. Flight 13, which launched the lunar orbiter SELENE, was the first H-IIA launched after this privatization.[1]

The H-IIA is a derivative of the earlier H-II rocket, substantially redesigned to improve reliability and minimize costs. There have been four variants, with two in active service (as of 2020) for various purposes. A derivative design, the H-IIB, was developed in the 2000s and made its maiden flight in 2009.

Vehicle description

The launch capability of an H-IIA launch vehicle can be enhanced by adding SRB-A solid rocket booster (SRB) and Castor 4AXL solid strap-on booster (SSB) to its basic configuration. The models are indicated by three or four numbers following the prefix "H2A":[2]

  • The first number in the sequence indicates the number of stages
  • The second, the number of liquid rocket boosters (LRBs)
  • The third, the number of SRBs
  • An optional fourth number shows the number of SSBs.

The first two figures are virtually fixed at "20", as H-IIA is always two-staged, and the plans for LRBs were cancelled and superseded by the H-IIB.

Variants

Launch system status
  Active
  Discontinued
  Cancelled
More information Designation, Mass (tonnes) ...

Launch history

Main article: List of H-II and H3 launches

The first H-IIA was successfully launched on 29 August 2001, followed by a string of successes.

The sixth launch on 29 November 2003, intended to launch two IGS reconnaissance satellites, failed. JAXA announced that launches would resume in 2005, and the first successful flight took place on 26 February 2005 with the launch of MTSAT-1R.

The first launch for a mission beyond Earth orbit was on 14 September 2007 for the SELENE Moon mission. The first foreign payload on the H-IIA was the Australian FedSat-1 in 2002. As of March 2015, 27 out of 28 launches were successful.

A rocket with increased launch capabilities, H-IIB, is a derivative of the H-IIA family. H-IIB uses two LE-7A engines in its first stage, as opposed to one in H-IIA. The first H-IIB was successfully launched on 10 September 2009.

For the 29th flight on 24 November 2015, an H-IIA with an upgraded second stage[6] launched the Telstar 12V satellite, the first commercial primary payload for a Japanese launch vehicle.[7]

More information Flight No., Date (UTC) ...

See also

References

Notes

  1. [1]
    "Mitsubishi and Arianespace Combine Commercial Satellite Launch Services". SatNews. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012.
  2. [2]
    "H-IIA Launch Vehicle" (PDF). JAXA. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2007.
  3. [3]
    三菱重工、「H2A」2機種に半減・民営化でコスト減. NIKKEI NET
  4. [4]
    "Japan Reenters Rocket Race With New Improved H2A". Space Daily. 20 August 2001.
  5. [5]
    "H-2A".
  6. [6]
    "Launch Result of Telstar 12 VANTAGE by H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 29". JAXA. 24 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  7. [7]
    William Graham (23 November 2015). "Japanese H-IIA successfully lofts Telstar 12V". NASASpaceflight. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  8. [8]
    "Launch Result of IGS #2/H-IIA F6". JAXA. 29 November 2003. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  9. [9]
    "Launch Result of the IBUKI (GOSAT) by H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 15". MHI and JAXA. 23 January 2009. Archived from the original on 21 June 2013. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  10. [10]
    "H-IIA F16". Sorae. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012.
  11. [11]
    "Launch Day of the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 17". JAXA. 3 March 2010. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2010.
  12. [12]
    "Overview of Secondary Payloads". JAXA.
  13. [13]
    Tariq Malik (18 May 2010). "New Venus Probe to Launch Thursday From Japan After". space.com. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  14. [14]
    Chris Bergin (17 May 2010). "JAXA launch H-IIA carrying AKATSUKI and IKAROS scrubbed". NASASpaceflight. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
  15. [15]
    "New Launch Day of the First Quasi-Zenith Satellite 'MICHIBIKI' by H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 18". JAXA.
  16. [16]
    Chris Bergin (23 September 2011). "Japanese H-2A launches with new IGS military satellite". NASASpaceflight.
  17. [17]
    Chris Bergin (11 December 2011). "Japanese H-2A lofts IGS (Radar-3) satellite into orbit". NASASpaceflight.
  18. [18]
    "Launch Overview – H-IIA Launch Services Flight No.21". Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  19. [19]
    Clark, Stephen (18 April 2016). "Attitude control failures led to break-up of Japanese astronomy satellite". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 21 April 2016.

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