3rd time’s the charm? Watch private Japanese rocket try to reach orbit today

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Space One hopes the third time will be the charm for its Kairos rocket.

The Japanese startup plans to launch Kairos for the third time ever today (March 3). Liftoff from Space One's Spaceport Kii in Wakayama Prefecture is scheduled for a 20-minute window that opens at 9 p.m. EST (0200 GMT and 11:00 a.m. local time in Japan on March 4).

You can watch it live here at Space.com courtesy of Space One, or directly via the company. Coverage will begin an hour before launch.

Space One, which was founded in 2018, aims to become a major player in the small-satellite launch industry. The company wants to be launching 20 missions per year by the end of the decade and 30 per year in the 2030s.

Space One's first rocket is the 59-foot-tall (18 meters) Kairos, which consists of three solid-fuel stages topped by a liquid-propellant upper stage. Kairos can deliver up to 330 pounds (150 kilograms) of payload to sun-synchronous orbit, according to Space One.

Kairos has launched two times to date, encountering serious problems on each occasion.

Kairos' debut flight in March 2024 ended just five seconds after liftoff when the rocket's flight termination system detected lower-than-expected velocity and thrust.

The second launch, in December 2024, lasted longer but also met an explosive end. Space One terminated the mission about three minutes into flight, at an altitude of roughly 62 miles (100 kilometers), after detecting performance anomalies. Five satellites were lost.

Five small spacecraft will go up on today's flight as well. If all goes to plan, they will be deployed about 50 minutes after launch at an altitude of 310 miles (500 kilometers), according to Japanese outlet NHK.