Japan’s ispace Launches World’s First Commercial Moon Lander

Officials of ispace Inc.'s HAKUTO-R mission look at live broadcasting of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for ispace at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Tokyo on Dec. 11, 2022. Kyodo via Reuters

TOKYO—A Japanese space startup launched a spacecraft to the moon on Sunday after several delays, a step toward what would be a first for the nation and for a private company.

ispace Inc.’s HAKUTO-R mission took off without incident from Cape Canaveral, Florida, after two postponements caused by inspections of its SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.