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Japan launches smallest rocket ever to carry satellite into orbit
Japan has set a new spaceflight record -- and unlike most of these feats, it's defined by what wasn't involved. The country's Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has successfully launched the smallest-ever rocket to carry a satellite into orbit, a modest SS-520 sounding rocket modified with a third stage inside its nose cone to get its payload into orbit. As you might guess, the key to the record was the tiny cargo -- the rocket was carrying TRICOM-1R, a three-unit cubesat measuring just 13.6 inches long. You don't need a giant vehicle when the mission hardware would fit in the backseat of your car.
