A weather research satellite developed by US and Japanese space agencies to monitor global rain and snowfall has been launched into space.
The H-2A rocket carrying the satellite blasted off from Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Japan early on Friday morning local time.
The satellite, called the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) core observatory, separated from the rocket about 16 minutes later, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said.
The 6.5-metre high, 4-ton GPM, a joint mission between JAXA and NASA, will map global precipitation every three hours, the US space agency said.
"With this launch, we have taken another giant leap in providing the world with an unprecedented picture of our planet's rain and snow," NASA administrator Charles Bolden said.
"GPM will help us better understand our ever-changing climate, improve forecasts of extreme weather events like floods, and assist decision makers around the world to better manage water resources," Bolden said.
Japan spent 25.6 billion yen ($A28.00 million) on the project, while NASA's contribution came to some 93 billion yen.
