Y.M. COLUMN ARCHIVE

April 13, 2005

On the memorial day of 50th anniversary of the Pencil Rocket

This day 50 years ago on April 12, 1955, a small rocket of 23cm in length, 1.8cm in diameter and 200gr in weight, was horizontally fired at Kokubunji in the outer area of Tokyo. It was the Pencil Rocket, so named. Short sizzling sound of blast off was the first cry of space development of Japan. Did anyone at that moment envision today’s image of space development 50 years later? No one seemed to have had such an imagination, however, I suppose possibly Dr. Hideo Itokawa alone already had in his imaginary mind of much more advanced status of space development than what it is even today. The evidence to prove this is the article, “Science makes anything possible” posted on Mainichi News Paper that introduced his dream of “passenger rocket to cover Pacific Ocean in 20 minutes”. Fascinated by this attractive vision, many young researchers at “The Institute for Research in Productivity” at the University of Tokyo came to join “Avionics and Supersonic Aerodynamisc” (AVSA). This small research group of AVSA in the beginning eventually produced the Pencil Rocket and became a steady foundation to support space engineering of this country for her launching into spectacular activities in International Geophysical Year program.

I was then a fresh boy at junior high school. I have a vague memory that my father and brothers were talking about a newspaper article of the Pencil, “Japan going into rocket business?” It was a dawn of our home country stepping out to one’s own way right after the Peace Treaty at San Francisco, cleared out of the military occupations by the US and her allies after World War II. The horizontal firing of the Pencil Rocket at the pistol test-shooting site of Shin Chuo Industrial Company located at Kokubunji was selected one of the 10 biggest news of the year by the Ministry of Education. I don’t know why but the memory of my family atmosphere at the news of the Pencil long remained in my mind marking a strong impression that all of my family members somewhat foresaw “Japan has stepped forward to head for bright future”. In another word, the test firing foretold a small sign of the brighter future of Japan.

Later years in Japan, space development was directed not for commercial rocketry airline across Pacific but for challenging mysteries of space by tying up science with engineering hand in hand, out of which enlargement and high performance of Mu type rocket had been achieved in complying with the scientific demands of times, such as OHSUMI (the first Japanese satellite in 1970), HAKUCHO (the first Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite in 1979), SAKIGAKE (the test probe to watch Halley’s comet to have achieved, for the first time in the world in 1985, the schemes of the escape from the Earth gravitation by solid fuel), HITEN (the first Japanese lunar mission in 1990), YOHKOH (solar exploration satellite to have changed human images of the sun in 1991), GEOTAIL (participated in the large-scale international observation program on solar-earth physics in 1992), ASCA (led the world in space based X-ray spectrum observations in 1993 through1990’s), HALCA (the astronomical radio observation satellite by using space-based VLBI observations) and many other missions, too numerous to mention, which have made the top-class contributions to the world space science based upon the foundation of the Pencil and its successors.

HAYABUSA, sample retrieval mission from asteroid, was launched in May 2003. This was the first attempt since Apollo to bring surface materials back to earth from other celestial body. HAYABUSA is now traveling to the target asteroid “ITOKAWA” by using ion engines of electric propulsion system and will approach the destination in fall this year to start mission works of observations and sample collection. I just wonder how Dr. Itokawa were feeling about its naming of the asteroid. He might complain, “Why did you put my name on such a tiny body of only 500 meters in size?” But hopefully I think that not only space business people but also general public will put their wishes and hopes on HAYABUSA mission to guide bright road to the future escaping from today’s stagnation just like the Pencil foretold 50 years ago opening up of the later years’ tremendous growth of this country. I really think it interesting that the target of HAYABUSA, the glorious mission shouldered with the same responsibility as the Pencil, was named after the one who produced all stage show of the Pencil 50 years ago. NOZOMI, the first Japanese mars orbiter launched in 1998, had to be regretfully given up its putting into orbit, likewise only God knows, before the mission returns to earth, what fate of scenario would await HAYABUSA originally built for engineering performance test. However, one thing is certain that the lessons learned from these two mission vehicles have dramatically powered up Japan’s technology to advance into exploration of solar system, thanks to which it can be said without doubt that we are now shoulder to shoulder with the world level, or perhaps even partly superior to those of the world. We hope your patient warm attention continued to be given to our space activities.

The Pencil has become a small guiding lighthouse for Japan trying to leap forward, which is symbolically telling that the space is an investment target for future. Today in this country, we are in a kind of difficult phase in developing space activities to pioneer for future, where rocket launching each time invites controversial yes or no. On the other hand, the public reaction to the recently announced “Long term space vision by JAXA”, paradoxically conveys people’s strong wishes toward JAXA to take powerful leadership of “strong future-oriented action”. The publicized vision of JAXA depicts the true capability of JAXA and its current status in a condensed style, nothing more or less. We have no other choice but to restart from here.

I welcome your opinions on this column to the following E-mail address.
matogawa@planetary.or.jp