Fairing for H-IIA Launch Vehicle Delivered
Sep. 26, 2014
Tokyo, September 26, 2014 — Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. announced today that it has shipped a payload fairing*1 for the H-IIA launch vehicle to the Tanegashima Space Center. The payload fairing was shipped from the Harima Works, where it was assembled following design and manufacturing at the Gifu Works.
The four-meter single-payload fairing will be delivered to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., which will then incorporate it into its H-IIA launch vehicle. The H-IIA launch vehicle will carry JAXA's Hayabusa2*2 asteroid explorer into space when Mitsubishi launches it at Tanegashima Space Center before the end of March 2015.
Since delivering the first payload fairing for the H-II launch vehicle in 1993, Kawasaki has developed and manufactured a variety of payload fairings for a total of 25 H-IIA launch vehicles, including four-meter single (4S), four-meter dual (4/4D), and five-meter single (5S) fairings, in addition to seven payload fairings for the H-II launch vehicle. Kawasaki's track record also includes four payload fairings for the H-IIB launch vehicle used to carry the H-II Transfer Vehicle, a cargo transporter designed to deliver supplies to the International Space Station, as well as the payload fairing for JAXA's solid-fuel Epsilon Launch Vehicle launched in 2013. The sole manufacturer of payload fairings in Japan, Kawasaki is capable of meeting a wide spectrum of satellite-related needs.
Backed by a proven track record and superior technological capability, Kawasaki continues to play a vital role in today's satellite launch industry.
| Overview of Payload Fairing for the H-IIA Launch Vehicle | |
|---|---|
| Type: | 4 m single fairing (4S type) |
| Length: | 12 m |
| Diameter: | Approximately 4.1 m |
| Payload: | 1 satellite of up to approximately 10.2 m in length, 3.7 m in diameter |
- *1
- A payload fairing is an enclosure installed at the tip of a launch vehicle that protects the satellite from aerodynamic heating, acoustic noise and vibration during liftoff. After the launch vehicle leaves the earth's atmosphere, the fairing splits in two and is jettisoned, allowing the satellite to separate from the launch vehicle.
- *2
- Building on Japan's unique world-class space exploration technology, Hayabusa2 will study the origin and evolution of the solar system as well as life via the scientific observation and sample return missions to an asteroid that is believed to have water and organic matter on its surface.
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