Japan to launch intelligence-gathering satellite in January

Japan will launch an H2A rocket carrying a government optical intelligence-gathering satellite in January from a launch site in southwestern Japan, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. said Monday.The device will join the country's seven other reconnaissance satellites believed to be utilized for purposes such as monitoring development in North Korean missile sites.The H2A F41 rocket will lift off between 10 a.m. and noon on Jan. 27 from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, said Mitsubishi Heavy, which is in charge of the launch.Japan operates two types of reconnaissance satell…READ FULL ARTICLE