Japan launched a satellite today to help build a high-precision geolocation system that will complement the US-operated Global Positioning System (GPS).
Footage by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency showed, a H-IIA rocket blasting off at 9:17am local time from the Tanegashima space centre in southern Japan carrying the “Michibiki” No.2 satellite.
Satellite geolocation systems, initially designed for the US military, now power countless civilian applications, from car navigation to Internet browsing on mobile phones.
Japan aims to build its version with four satellites focusing on the country and wider region. The first satellite was put into orbit in 2010 and the third and fourth are to be launched by March 2018 to start the service.
