An Epsilon-3 solid fuel rocket successfully placed an Earth observation satellite into orbit Thursday morning, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said.

The rocket carrying the ASNARO-2, a small radar satellite developed by NEC Corp., lifted off from the Uchinoura Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture at 6:06 a.m. and put the satellite into orbit at around 7 a.m., according to the agency.

The Epsilon-3, a 26-meter-long, three-stage rocket, was the third of its type to be successfully launched, following flights in 2013 and 2016. On Thursday it carried a private satellite for the first time, with the previous two rockets having transported JAXA satellites.