Honda pulls off surprise reusable rocket test launch – DW – 06/18/2025
www.dw.com
Honda says growing expectations of a "data system in outer space" are going to increase the demand for rockets to launch satellites. So, the Japanese automaker quietly built one and tested it successfully.

Honda says growing expectations of a “data system in outer space” are going to increase the demand for rockets to launch satellites. So, the Japanese automaker quietly built one and tested it successfully.

Japan’s second-largest carmaker, Honda, has successfully tested an experimental reusable space rocket on the nothern Japanese island of Hokkaido, the company said in a surprise announcement.

“The test was completed successfully, the first time Honda landed a rocket after reaching an altitude of nearly 300 meters (1,000 feet),” the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

The carmaker aims to achieve suborbital space flight in 2029. In 2021, Honda said it was studying space technologies such as reusable rockets but made no announcements prior to Tuesday’s test

  • LesserAbe@lemmy.worldEnglish
    7·
    6 hours ago

    He’s a shit show, but SpaceX is still doing great. They have more launches per year than any other company or country. While they’ve had multiple launches explode recently, that’s their newer larger rocket where they’re still working out kinks.

    If they can’t get that into shape eventually it could be a problem for the company, but their smaller rocket has a great record, reusable, a fraction of the cost of any other launch provider. Right now they’re the only game in town for the U.S. getting to the ISS.

    I’d love to see Musk ousted, and more importantly to see real competition from other private launch providers. But don’t let Musk hate color your view of reality.