Japan rocket set to blast off for International Space Station

The H-IIB rocket is set to lift off from the southern island of Tanegashima at 8:50 pm (1150 GMT)

Afp August 19, 2015

japan 039 s h iib rocket is set on the rocket launching pad of the tanegashima space center in tanegashima island in kagoshima prefecture japan 039 s southern island of kyushu on august 19 2015 the rocket is to lift off from the southern island of tanegashima after being postponed twice due to the weather condition the rocket is designed to bring a 5 5 ton cargo vessel called quot konotori quot stork in japanese containing supplies such as food water clothing and tools necessary for experiments to be done in space photo afp

Japan's H-IIB rocket is set on the rocket launching pad of the Tanegashima Space Center in Tanegashima island in Kagoshima prefecture, Japan's southern island of Kyushu on August 19, 2015. The rocket is to lift off from the southern island of Tanegashima after being postponed twice due to the weather condition. The rocket is designed to bring a 5.5-ton cargo vessel called "konotori" (stork in Japanese), containing supplies such as food, water, clothing and tools necessary for experiments to be done in space. PHOTO: AFP

TOKYO: A Japanese rocket is set to blast off later Wednesday, carrying emergency supplies and an unmanned cargo vessel bound for the International Space Station.

The H-IIB rocket is set to lift off from the southern island of Tanegashima at 8:50 pm (1150 GMT) after the launch was postponed twice due to weather conditions, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said.

Officials from the government run agency said the launch was still on schedule as of Wednesday afternoon.

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The rocket will carry a 5.5-tonne cargo vessel called "kounotori" (stork in Japanese), which contains supplies including food, water, clothing and tools necessary for experiments to be done in space.

Television footage showed the rocket loaded with the cargo being erected at the launcher on Wednesday.

PHOTO: AFP

The mission should reach the International Space Station, where Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui is staying, on August 24.

Yui has been tasked with catching the cargo vessel with robotic arms and then affixing it to the space station.

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The rocket will also carry parts for a water recycling system, after US-based NASA asked its Japanese counterparts to include them as "emergency materials" in the cargo following the failure in June to launch a US Falcon 9 rocket.

The unmanned SpaceX rocket exploded minutes after lift off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, marking a major setback for the fast-charging company headed by technology tycoon Elon Musk.

The accident was the third in less than a year involving US and Russian supply ships bound for the International Space Station, and raised new concerns about the flow of food and gear to the astronauts living in orbit.