iQPS radar satellite awaits a planned 14 November launch
· BehindLines newsroom
The next launch of Japan's QPS-SAR-19 satellite is announced for no earlier than 14 November. Rocket Lab lists the opening of the launch window at 18:30 New Zealand time for The Mountain God Rises mission. This schedule remains provisional; it does not describe a launch that has already taken place.
The satellite, named Yamatsumi-II, is to travel aboard an Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1. The Japanese operator iQPS also gives 14 November and a target orbit at an altitude of 575 kilometres. The two companies therefore describe the same future mission, one from the transport side and the other from the observation instrument side.
Radar to look at Earth (Terre)
QPS-SAR belongs to a family of small satellites designed by iQPS to produce radar images of Earth's surface. The company describes a large antenna that unfolds in orbit while remaining compact during transport. Radar uses radio waves, so it does not depend on the same lighting as a camera.
According to the project presentation, the technique's benefits include observations at night and through clouds. These are capabilities of the system. One additional satellite does not mean continuous surveillance of every location.
A constellation still being built
iQPS aims for 24 satellites by May 2028, followed by further deployments towards 2030. The company presents an average observation interval of ten minutes as a target for its future service, rather than a capability demonstrated by the announced flight alone.
For those following the launch, two stages therefore remain distinct: sending the satellite into space and subsequently supplying data. The 14 November date primarily concerns Yamatsumi-II's planned departure. It is not enough to prove that the entire proposed network is already operational.