TiSPACE, a private-sector Taiwanese rocket manufacturer and launch service provider, is scheduled to launch a suborbital rocket on July 6 at Taiki in Japan's Hokkaido Prefecture, via its Japanese subsidiary Jtspace. The choice of location is due to Taiwan's current lack of commercial launch facilities.
According to Jtspace, the suborbital rocket VP01 will be test-launched on July 6 from the Hokkaido Spaceport (HOSPO) Launch Complex 1, Launch Pad 12 (LC1-LP12). If successful, this mission will mark the first rocket launch in Japan funded by a foreign entity.
The launch will occur during one of the following time windows in Japan Standard Time: 6:00–7:30, 10:50–12:00, or 16:00–17:00. If delayed due to weather or other factors, backup launch dates are scheduled for the weekends of July 12–13, July 19–20, or July 26–27.
The VP01 rocket is 12 meters high, weighs 1.4 tonnes, and is powered by a hybrid propulsion system combining synthetic rubber solid fuel and nitrous oxide. The first stage provides a thrust of 6,500 kgf, while the second stage offers 1,100 kgf.
The rocket will be launched at a southeastward azimuth and is expected to reach the Kármán Line, the conventional boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space, at an altitude of 100 km. The mission aims to validate the functionality of all rocket systems and collect critical data for developing orbital launch vehicles capable of carrying satellites.
If successful, this will be the first rocket launched from Hokkaido Spaceport to reach 100 km in altitude since Interstellar Technologies' MOMO F6 rocket in July 2021. It will also be the first rocket launch in Japan funded by a foreign entity.
Since its founding in 2016, TiSPACE has made multiple attempts to launch its Hapith I rocket, all of which have ended in failure. The most recent attempt was in 2022 via its Australian sister company AtSpace, which failed due to an oxidizer leak. The VP01 suborbital rocket scheduled to be launched in Japan is reportedly a completely different design, and is thus viewed as a crucial test of TiSPACE's technological maturity and commercial reliability after a series of earlier setbacks.
In an earlier interview, Yu-rui Lai, head of space development at Jtspace, noted that Taiwanese rocket companies need to seek foreign collaboration, as Taiwan currently lacks purpose-built commercial launch facilities, and regulations on the matter are still not in place. In addition, TiSPACE noted in a Reuters interview that if the launch in Japan is successful, the company will expand its production capacity in Japan to better serve local clients.
Article edited by Jack Wu
