The Japanese startup's second attempt to launch its solid-fuel rocket ended in chaos, with Kairos tumbling down minutes after liftoff. The launch failure marks another setback for Japan's private space industry after a series of rocket launches earlier this year.

Japan's Space One launched its Kairos rocket on Wednesday from the company's Spaceport Kii launch pad in Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture. The rocket seems to be flying normally at first, but things quickly start to go wrong. About two minutes after lifting, Kairos appeared to lose control of the character, and began to fall to the bottom. The rocket self-destructed after abnormalities were detected in the first-stage engine nozzle controls and the rocket's trajectory, Space One director Mamoru Endo told reporters at a post-launch briefing, according to on Reuters.

Kairos is carrying five small satellites from the Taiwan Space Agency, and Japanese companies Lagrapo, Space Cubics, and Terra Space, as well as a fifth customer who wishes to remain anonymous.

This is Space One's second attempt to become the first commercial Japanese company to independently put satellites into Earth orbit (Japan's space agency, JAXA, has done this several times, working with companies such as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries). The beginning first tried to launch Kairos in Marchbut the launch vehicle exploded just seconds after clearing the tower in Wakayama prefecture. The rocket's autonomous self-destruct system was stopped due to anomalous flight settings about five seconds after launch. Kairos carries an experimental satellite for the Japanese government.

the three-stage Kairos rocketequipped with solid-fuel engines and a liquid-fuel post-boost stage, designed to deliver payloads of up to 550 pounds (250 kilograms) into low Earth orbit. With its 59-foot (18-meter) long rocket, Space One hopes to compete with companies like SpaceX and Rocket Lab by delivering satellites into space quickly and cheaply. The company aims to launch 30 rockets per year in the 2030s, ACCORDING to Kyodo News. Space One may have to wait a little longer to reach that speed, which seems possible with Kairos, a rocket similar to Rocket Lab's Electron.

"We do not consider this event a failure," Space One president Masakazu Toyoda told reporters after the launch failure, according to AFP. "We believe that the data and experience gained… is extremely valuable and we believe it will be useful for the next challenge."

JAXA is also looking to compete in the new space age. Despite some failures of its own, JAXA Cebu launched new to this H3 rocket in the second test in February. Japan's Epsilon S rocket, on the other hand, exploded during a test in late November.