Kakuda Space Center (角田宇宙センター, Kakuda Uchu Sentaa) is a facility of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), located in the city of Kakuda in Miyagi Prefecture in northern Japan, specializing in the development and testing of rocket engines and space propulsion systems. The LE-5 (including the LE-5A/LE-5B version), and the LE-7 (including the LE-7A version) rocket enginese were developed at the Kakuda Space Center.
History
The predecessor to the Kakuda Space Center was established in 1965 as the "Kakuda Branch Laboratory" of the National Aerospace Laboratory of Japan under the aegis of the Science and Technology Agency. In 1978, the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) constructed the "Kakuda Rocket Development Center" on the same campus. Its purpose was to engage in basic research and development to raise the level of Japanese rocket propulsion technology. From the late 1980s, the Center also began research into space plane propulsion, especially scramjet technology and advanced materials research for reusable space engines.
