A Year in Transition

摘要

Japan's space and satellite sectors, traditionally among the largest and most advanced of the Asia-Pacific region, went through an eventful year, reorganising themselves and preparing for the future. The successful launch of the Superbird-4 spacecraft, lofted in space on 18 February 2000 atop an Ariane-4 rocket, was one of the major events that took place in Japan's space sector during the year 2000. The satellite is currently known with the post-launch name of Superbird-B2.