Japan's 1st commercial rocket explodes shortly after liftoff The launch pad was not damaged and no personnel were injured.

A Japanese company's first orbital launch attempt ended in a dramatic failure just seconds after liftoff on Wednesday. The 18-meter-long, four-stage Kairos solid rocket lifted off from Space Port Kii in Kushimoto, western Japan at 10:01 p.m. EDT March 12 (0201 GMT or 11:01 a.m. Japan time on March 13). The flight ended abruptly seconds after it rose off the launch pad when the flight termination system triggered, resulting in the rocket exploding.

The attempt to become the first Japanese private launch company to reach orbit resulted in debris strewn across the launch site. A post-launch press conference stated that no damage was caused and no personnel injured. Fires visible in the immediate aftermath were soon extinguished.