东京 —— 日本计划开始与三菱重工业就将该国旗舰运载火箭H3的发射运营责任移交给该公司展开讨论，目标是在2027年前完成过渡。
TOKYO -- Japan plans to begin discussions with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries on transferring responsibility to the company for launch operations of the country's flagship H3 rocket, looking to complete the transition by 2027.
此举旨在缓解成本管控压力，增强火箭的商业竞争力，帮助日本在目前由美国SpaceX公司主导的市场中赢得更多海外卫星发射合同。
The aim is to ease cost management and strengthen the rocket's commercial competitiveness, helping Japan win more overseas satellite launch contracts in a market now led by American company SpaceX.
迄今为止，三菱重工负责制造日本的火箭，而日本宇宙航空研究开发机构（JAXA）保留着发射运营的最终责任。
Until now, Mitsubishi Heavy has been responsible for manufacturing Japan's rockets, while the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has retained ultimate responsibility for launch operations.
将发射运营移交给私营部门将使H3的服务营销和争取卫星发射订单更具灵活性。对未来发射需求有更清晰的预期，也将有利于批量采购零部件，从而降低成本。
Transferring launch operations to the private sector would allow greater flexibility in marketing the H3's services and securing satellite launch orders. Better visibility on future launch demand would also enable bulk procurement of components, helping lower costs.
H3的前身H-IIA火箭的发射成本估计约为每次100亿日元（约合6330万美元）——高于SpaceX等外国竞争对手。H-IIA仅从海外获得了五份发射合同，客户包括韩国和加拿大。
Costs for the H3's predecessor, the H-IIA, were estimated at about 10 billion yen ($63.3 million) per launch -- higher than such foreign competitors as SpaceX. The H-IIA secured just five launch contracts from overseas, including from South Korea and Canada.
H3自2014年起开始研发，目标是将发射成本降至H-IIA的一半左右，其前提是最终将发射运营移交给私营部门。首次和第七次发射的失败曾推迟了私有化的时间表。
The H3 was developed from 2014 -- targeting launch costs roughly half of the H-IIA's -- on the assumption that launch operations would eventually be transferred to the private sector. Failures during the first and seventh launches had delayed the timetable for privatization.
在周二H3火箭第十次发射成功且未出现重大技术问题后，文部科学省和JAXA认定该火箭已具备向私营部门管理过渡的条件。政府和三菱重工将就移交的具体条款和条件展开谈判。
Following the successful 10th H3 launch on Tuesday and the absence of any major technical problems, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and JAXA have concluded that the rocket is ready for a transition to private-sector management. The government and Mitsubishi Heavy will negotiate specific terms and conditions of the transfer moving forward.
SpaceX 主导全球卫星发射市场。日本内阁府的数据显示，2025 年全球共发射 316 枚火箭，其中 SpaceX 发射了 165 枚，占比超过一半。该由埃隆·马斯克创立的公司通过使用可回收并再次发射的可重复使用火箭，获得了显著的成本优势。
SpaceX dominates the global satellite launch market. Of 316 rockets launched worldwide in 2025, SpaceX accounted for more than half, at 165, data from Japan's Cabinet Office shows. The Elon Musk-founded company has achieved a strong cost advantage through the use of reusable rockets that can be recovered and launched again.
将 H3 发射业务转移至民营部门，将使日本宇宙航空研究开发机构（JAXA）能够将人员转向研发工作，包括可重复使用火箭技术的研发，以进一步提升性能并降低成本。
Shifting H3 launch operations to the private sector would enable JAXA to redirect personnel toward research and development, including work on reusable rocket technology that could further improve performance and reduce costs.
预计全球对卫星发射的需求将继续增长，应用包括地球观测和通信等。日本认为，更具竞争力的 H3 有望抢占 SpaceX 单独难以完全满足的需求。
Continued growth is expected in worldwide demand for satellite launches for such applications as Earth observation and communications. Japan believes that a more competitive H3 could capture demand that cannot be fully met by SpaceX alone.