U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy was on hand this morning (Friday) to observe the launch of a highly advanced new U.S.-Japan weather satellite.

A Japanese H-IIA rocket carrying the NASA-Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) satellite blasted off at 3:37am local time from Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan.

The satellite will contribute to the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) to collect data on worldwide rain and snowfall. It’s expected to greatly improve the accuracy of weather forecasts.

(--SOT--) S/Ambassador Caroline Kennedy

“This mission is a wonderful example of the more than 40-year collaboration in space between Japan and the United States and the work that our two countries do to benefit humanity.”