Posted: Wed, Oct 8, 2014, 8:40 AM ET (1240 GMT)
An H-2A rocket successfully launched a new weather satellite on Tuesday. The H-2A rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center at 1:16 am EDT (0516 GMT, 2:16 pm local time) Tuesday and placed the Himawari-8 satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit less than a half-hour later. The satellite, built by Mitsubishi Electric and weighing about 3,500 kilograms at launch, will operate from 140 degrees east in GEO, replacing existing Japanese weather satellites there. The satellite incorporates an advanced imaging system provided by an American company, Exelis.

Related Links:

•  Spaceflight Now article
•  NASASpaceFlight.com article
•  AFP article
•  Asahi Shimbun article
•  JAXA press release