TOKYO: The last of Japan’s Kounotori unmanned cargo spacecraft has completed its mission after being separated from the International Space Station, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said.

The Kounotori 9 re-entered Earth’s atmosphere at 4:07 p.m. Thursday  and burned up, rounding off the successful missions by the Kounotori series.

The role of ferrying supplies to the ISS will be taken on by the HTV-X cargo spacecraft, whose first unit is slated to be launched in fiscal 2021.

Since the first one in 2009, all nine Kounotori missions have been successful.   

The last Kounotori was launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, in May, carrying supplies including fresh foods and laboratory equipment.

After the supplies were delivered, the vessel was separated from the ISS in the small hours of Wednesday for re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.

The Kounotori series was the sole means of delivering large equipment to the ISS after the retirement of the U.S. space shuttle in 2011.

The series carried Japan-made lithium-ion batteries to replace old batteries used at the ISS.

In November 2018, a compact capsule containing experiment samples re-entered Earth’s atmosphere after being delivered by the Kounotori 7, marking the first time for Japan to collect samples from the ISS.

JIJI Press