Product Code Database
The M-V rocket, also called M-5 or Mu-5, was a Japanese solid-fuel rocket designed to launch Science . It was a member of the Mu family of . The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) began developing the M-V in 1990 at a cost of 15 billion Japanese yen. It has three stages and is high, in diameter, and weighs about . It was capable of launching a satellite weighing into an orbit as high as .
The first M-V rocket launched the HALCA radio astronomy satellite in 1997, and the second the Nozomi Mars explorer in July 1998. The third rocket attempted to launch the ASTRO-E X-ray satellite on 10 February 2000 but failed. ISAS recovered from this setback and launched Hayabusa to 25143 Itokawa in 2003. The following M-V launch was the scientific Astro-E2 satellite, a replacement for Astro-E, which took place on 10 July 2005. The final launch was that of the Hinode (SOLAR-B) spacecraft, along with the SSSat microsat and a nanosatellite, HIT-SAT, on 22 September 2006.
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-1 | 12 February 1997 04:50:00 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | MUSES-B (HALCA) | ||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-3 | 3 July 1998 18:12:00 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | PLANET-B (Nozomi) | ||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-4 | 10 February 2000 01:30:00 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | ASTRO-E | ||||
| Failure of 1st stage engine nozzle caused control system breakdown and under performance. Later stages could not compensate for under performance leaving payload in x orbit and subsequent reentry. | |||||||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-5 | 9 May 2003 04:29:25 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | MUSES-C (Hayabusa) | ||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-6 | 10 July 2005 03:30:00 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | ASTRO-E2 (Suzaku) | ||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-8 | 21 February 2006 21:28:00 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | ASTRO-F (Akari) CUTE-1.7 + APD SSP (solar sail sub payload) | ||||
| SSP failed to open completely | |||||||||
! scope="row" rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | M-V-7 | 22 September 2006 21:36 | M-V | Uchinoura M-V | SOLAR-B (Hinode) HIT-SAT SSSat (solar sail) | ||||
| SSSat failed after launch | |||||||||
The first launch, of a small scientific satellite SPRINT-A (Hisaki), took place in September 2013. The initial launches will be of a two-stage version, of Epsilon, with up to a 500 kilogram LEO payload capability.
Lawmakers made national security arguments for keeping Japan's solid-fuel rocket technology alive after ISAS was merged into JAXA, which also has the H-IIA liquid-fuelled rocket, in 2003. The ISAS director of external affairs, Yasunori Matogawa, said, "It seems the hard-line national security proponents in parliament are increasing their influence, and they aren't getting much criticism... I think we’re moving into a very dangerous period. When you consider the current environment and the threat from North Korea, it's scary".
Toshiyuki Shikata, a Tokyo Metropolitan Government adviser and former lieutenant general, claimed that part of the rationale for the fifth M-V Hayabusa mission was that the reentry and landing of its return capsule demonstrated "that Japan's ballistic missile capability is credible".
At a technical level the M-V design could be weaponised quickly (as an Intercontinental ballistic missile, since only payload and guidance have to be changed) although this would be politically unlikely. The M-V is comparable in performance to the LGM-118 Peacekeeper ICBM.
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