H-IIA

H-IIA

H-IIA No. F23 rolls out to the launch pad in February 2014
Function	Medium-lift launch vehicle
Manufacturer	Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (prime) IHI Corporation (sub) Northrop Grumman Space Systems (sub, until 2008)
Country of origin	Japan
Cost per launch	US$90 million [1]
Size
Height	53 m (174 ft)
Diameter	4 m (13 ft)
Mass	285,000–445,000 kg (628,000–981,000 lb)
Stages	2
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass	10,000–15,000 kg (22,000–33,000 lb)
Payload to GTO
Mass	4,100–6,000 kg (9,000–13,200 lb)
Associated rockets
Family	H-II
Derivative work	H-IIB
Launch history
Status	Active
Launch sites	Tanegashima, LA-Y
Total launches	48 202: 33 204: 5 2022: 3 2024: 7
Success(es)	47 202: 33 204: 5 2022: 3 2024: 6
First flight	202: 29 August 2001 204: 18 December 2006 2022: 26 February 2005 2024: 4 February 2002
Last flight	202: 12 January 2024 (active) 204: 22 December 2021 2022: 14 September 2007 2024: 23 February 2008
Type of passengers/cargo	SELENE Ibuki Akatsuki Hayabusa 2 Emirates Mars Mission
Boosters – SRB-A
No. boosters	2–4
Height	15.1 m
Diameter	2.5 m
Maximum thrust	2,260 kN (510,000 lbf)
Total thrust	4,520–9,040 kN (1,020,000–2,030,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	280 s (2.7 km/s)
Burn time	120 seconds
Propellant	HTPB
Boosters (2022, 2024) – Castor 4A-XL
No. boosters	2–4
Maximum thrust	745 kN (167,000 lbf)
Total thrust	1,490–2,980 kN (330,000–670,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	280 s (2.7 km/s)
Burn time	60 seconds
Propellant	Solid
First stage
Height	37.2 m
Diameter	4 m
Powered by	1 LE-7A
Maximum thrust	1,098 kN (247,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	440 s (4.3 km/s)
Burn time	390 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
Second stage
Height	9.2 m
Diameter	4 m
Powered by	1 LE-5B
Maximum thrust	137 kN (31,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	447 s (4.38 km/s)
Burn time	534 seconds
Propellant	LH2 / LOX
[edit on Wikidata]

H-IIA (H-2A) is an active expendable launch system operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. These liquid fuel rockets have been used to launch satellites into geostationary orbit; lunar orbiting spacecraft; Akatsuki, which studied the planet Venus; and the Emirates Mars Mission, which was launched to Mars in July 2020. Launches occur at the Tanegashima Space Center. The H-IIA first flew in 2001. As of February 2024^[update], H-IIA rockets were launched 48 times, including 42 consecutive missions without a failure, dating back to 29 November 2003.

Production and management of the H-IIA shifted from JAXA to MHI on 1 April 2007. Flight 13, which launched the lunar orbiter SELENE, was the first H-IIA launched after this privatization.^[1]

The H-IIA is a derivative of the earlier H-II rocket, substantially redesigned to improve reliability and minimize costs. There have been four variants, with two in active service (as of 2020) for various purposes. A derivative design, the H-IIB, was developed in the 2000s and made its maiden flight in 2009.