H3 – Spaceflight Now

May 17, 2026

Breaking News

[ May 15, 2026 ] NASA, SpaceX launch Dragon mission with 6,500 pounds of science and supplies to the space station Falcon 9
[ May 14, 2026 ] ULA confirms successful solid rocket booster test as Vulcan anomaly investigation continues News
[ May 12, 2026 ] SpaceX targets May 19 for debut of Starship Version 3, Launch Pad 2 Mission Reports
[ May 12, 2026 ] For a second time, poor weather scrubs Cargo Dragon mission launch to the space station Falcon 9
[ May 11, 2026 ] SpaceX launches intelligence-gathering satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office Falcon 9

H3 rocket suffers upper stage anomaly, fails to correctly deploy navigation satellite

December 22, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

The Dec. 22 launch was the fourth and final flight of an H3 rocket in 2025.

Japanese space science missions facing delays after H3 rocket failure

April 11, 2023 Stephen Clark

The launch of a Japanese X-ray telescope and robotic lunar lander has been delayed to no earlier than August, and the launch schedule for another Japanese mission to return samples from a moon of Mars is in doubt as engineers investigate the failure of Japan’s first H3 rocket last month.

Phobos sample return mission enters development for 2024 launch

February 20, 2020 Stephen Clark

Japan’s space agency has approved a robotic mission to retrieve a sample from the Martian moon Phobos for return to Earth to begin full development for a planned launch in 2024, officials said Thursday.