Japan Orders Space Rocket To Self-Destruct After First Failed Launch Since 2003

The unmanned rocket, designed to launch in three stages, was taking several satellites into orbit on its sixth space mission.

Japan's space agency said it sent a self-destruct order to its Epsilon rocket after a failed launch on Wednesday because of a problem that meant the craft could not safely fly.

The unmanned rocket, designed to launch in three stages, was taking several satellites into orbit on its sixth space mission.

"The rocket can't continue a safe flight, because of the danger it would create if it falls on the ground," a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) official said in comments broadcast by TBS television network.

"So we took measures to avoid such an incident, and we sent the signal (to destroy the rocket)," he said, adding that information on the problem's cause was not immediately available.