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March 1, 2008 Updated
"KIZUNA"Completion of the Critical Operation Phase
JAXA completed the critical operation phase of the KIZUNA (WINDS,) whose multi-beam antennas had been successfully deployed, at 8:35 p.m. on March 1 (JST.) We will further maneuver the orbit from the drift orbit to the geostationary orbit (at about 143 degrees east longitude) sometime around March 14. We will also carry out the initial functional verification of the onboard equipment for about four months.
Launch photos of the H-IIA F14 sent by viewers are introduced here. 
JAXA provided a live report of the launch of the Wideband InterNetworking engineering test and Demonstration Satellite "KIZUNA" (WINDS)/H-IIA F14 from a studio at Tanegashima with JAXA employees' comments.
The "KIZUNA" is a communications satellite that enables super high-speed data communications of up to 1.2 Gbps to develop a society without any information availability disparity, in which everybody can equally enjoy high-speed communications wherever they live.
As a result of asking the public to nominate a nickname for it, 9,657 suggestions were received in total. Among them, "KIZUNA," meaning "ties" or "bonds," was chosen after 452 nominations for it were received, indicating the strong hope for the satellite to play the role of bonding people.
The KIZUNA is expected to be useful in various fields by connecting Japan to other Asian countries and space.
The H-IIA F14 is a "H2 A2024" type of rocket with two solid rocket boosters (SRB-A) and four solid strap-on boosters (SSB.)
WINDS is currently in its final stage of preparations before launch, scheduled for the winter of the fiscal year 2007. We interviewed WINDS project manager Yasuo Nakamura.
- March 3, 2008 (17:00)
- Wideband InterNetworking engineering test and Demonstration Satellite "KIZUNA" (WINDS) Anomaly in the Solar Sensor Signal Processing
- March 1, 2008 (22:30)
- Wideband InterNetworking engineering test and Demonstration Satellite "KIZUNA" (WINDS) Completion of the Critical Operation Phase
- March 1, 2008 (16:30)
- Wideband InterNetworking engineering test and Demonstration Satellite "KIZUNA" (WINDS) Deployment Results of Multi-beam Antennas
