From correspondents in Kanto, Japan, 02:38 PM IST

Japan successfully launched Saturday afternoon an H-2A rocket and put into orbit a radar satellite, the fourth and last one in its plan of building a full global information gathering system, which enables the photographing of any point on earth once a day.

The launch by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency of the radar satellite which is the second one of the second pair of the four-satellite scheme, was initially scheduled for Feb 15. But was postponed twice due to bad weather conditions around the Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Kagoshima prefecture.

The H-2A rocket launched Saturday also carried an experimental optical satellite which will be used to test the functions of apparatus which will be used to assemble a spy satellite.

Spy satellite, with ability to detect objects as small as 50 cm at ground level, is scheduled for launch in near future, reported Kyodo News of Japan.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)