Launch site · Japan
Tanegashima Space Center
Japan's largest launch site, where JAXA's H3 rocket launches.
Operator MHI
Upcoming launches
Times: local launch-site time / [your time] autodetected from your device: , the same as your time, autodetected from your device: . Launch dates move often; NET means no earlier than.
- NET2026ETS-9 - H3-22 - MHI TBD
- NET2027JSDF SDA satellite - H3-22 - MHI TBD
- NET2027IGS Optical Diversification 1 - H3-30 - MHI TBD
- NET2027HTV-X2 - H3-24 - MHI TBD
- NET2027HTV-X3 - H3-24 - MHI TBD
- NET2027IGS Optical 9 - H3-30 - MHI TBD
- NET2027IGS Optical Diversification 2 - H3-30 - MHI TBD
- NET2027Mid-Inclination Rideshare - H3 - MHI TBD
Where to watch a launch
- On launch day the space center and everything within 3 km of the pad are off-limits; you may watch from anywhere outside the center more than 3 km from the pad. global.jaxa.jp
- Minamitane Town runs four official viewing sites, and JAXA broadcasts the countdown audio at the town's sites. fanfun.jaxa.jp
- Hase Park — the site most visitors use: countdown broadcast, 300 parking spaces, toilets. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Uchugaoka Park — near the town centre: countdown broadcast, 250 parking spaces, toilets. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Maenomine Athletics Stadium — closest to the town centre: countdown broadcast, 80 parking spaces, toilets. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Eminoe Observation Park — closest to the pad, 100 parking spaces; entry only for winners of an advance lottery. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Hase Park, Uchugaoka Park and Maenomine need no booking; cars are turned away once the parking is full. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Saving a place with sheets, tripods or chairs left unattended is not allowed; drones are forbidden. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- Rocket Hill Observatory is closed to the public during launches. japan.travel
- Roads near Eminoe Observation Park and Hase Park run one-way, and the road into Uchugaoka Park is partly closed, from early morning until about an hour after launch. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
Getting there
- Fly from Kagoshima to Tanegashima Airport, about 30 minutes; direct Osaka (Itami) flights run only in the Obon holidays and over New Year. tanekan.jp
- Fast boats run from Kagoshima South Pier to Nishinoomote Port in about 1 hour 30 minutes; the car ferry takes about 3 hours 30 minutes. fanfun.jaxa.jp
- The drive to the space center takes about 50 minutes from the airport and about 70 minutes from Nishinoomote Port. fanfun.jaxa.jp
- Buses run mainly on weekdays; book a rental car well ahead, especially around launch dates. stripes.com
On the day
- JAXA Tanegashima Space Center posts news on X, @tnsc_JAXA; Minamitane posts launch-day traffic and parking on X, @minamitane_sda. fanfun.jaxa.jp
- Each launch has a backup window of several weeks; the town pays no travel costs if a viewing site closes. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
Hotels near Tanegashima Space Center
- Minamitane lists 41 places to stay, 24 of them in the town centre and 6 in Kukinaga near the space center; the island's tourism association lists 58 across Nishinoomote, Nakatane and Minamitane. town.minamitane.kagoshima.jp
- A place shown as full on a booking site may still have rooms by phone. tanekan.jp
Flights to Kagoshima
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