The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced the launch of a new generation weather satellite ,Himawari-8 on Oct. 7 from the Tanegashima Space Center aboard an H-2A carrier rocket at 14:16 local time (05:16 UTC).

The satellite is built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Tokyo and will observe weather conditions from geostationary orbit at 140 degrees east longitude. It will replace Himawari 7, which has been in orbit since 2006. It will shoot images every 10 minutes compared with every 30 minutes by the Himawari-7.

According to Japan Meteorological Agency, it is equipped with highly improved sensor, Advanced Himawari Imager to further support and improve meteorological services in a variety of fields such as weather forecasting, climate monitoring, natural disaster prevention and safe transportation.

The satellite's main sensor was built by Exelis Geospatial Systems of Rochester, New York. It is similar to the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) developed by Exelis for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's next generation of geostationary-orbiting weather satellites.

Eric Webster, vice-president for weather systems for Exelis, said, "We are all excited to get the ABI technology launched into space. In addition to providing Japan with improved weather forecasting information, the Himawari-8 sensor will give NOAA experience in working with ABI-class data".

Himawari-9, scheduled to launch in 2016, is identical to Himawari 8 and will take over as the on-orbit backup before replacing Himawari 8 around 2022.

Himawari-9 will make observations with greater frequency and in more spectral bands than the Multifunctional Transport Satellites they were designed to replace. According to the information posted on Japan Meteorological Agency website, this will provide unprecedented precision in monitoring not only clouds and other weather conditions but also volcanic ash and atmospheric aerosols.

Tuesday's launch was the 25th flight of the H-2A rocket and the vehicle's 19th consecutive success.