The Japanese space industry is about to reach another milestone. From its base on Tanegashima Island, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is counting down to the la launch of the HII-A JAXA s engineering marvel. Though this isn t its first launch, every launch might be stymied by a myriad of possible problems, and sometimes the consequences are heart breaking, expensive or even deadly. This time, as the HII-A attempts to carry its heaviest payload to date into space and join the big league of commercial satellite launchers, the stakes are as high as they ve ever been for Japan s space program.
