Japan has launched a spacecraft on a first-of-its-kind journey to Mars, where it will try to land on the planet’s moon Phobos and bring a piece of it back to Earth.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, which is leading the effort, launched the spacecraft before dawn on Tuesday from the main spaceport on Tanegashima Island, with officials declaring success an hour later, when the spacecraft separated as planned from the rocket’s upper stage.
