KAGOSHIMA, Japan, Feb. 24 Japan Saturday successfully launched its fourth intelligence-gathering satellite into Earth orbit aboard a H2A rocket.After the rocket was launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in the Kagoshima Prefecture on Saturday, the radar-equipped spy satellite was released and successfully began orbiting, the Japan Broadcasting Corp. reported.Through the use of its camera and radar, the satellite will enable Japan to accurately recognize objects from space from an altitude of more than 310 miles.With four such satellites now in orbit, Japan can take photographs of anywhere in the world on a daily basis.The Japan Broadcasting Corp. said the increased surveillance efforts were prompted by a North Korean missile test over Japan in 1998.Copyright 2007 by UPI
