Japan's space agency just launched the tiniest rocket to carry a satellite into orbit

A year after its tiny, experimental rocket failed to reach orbit a year ago, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully launched (via Engadget) an experimental rocket into orbit this weekend, the smallest ever to do so. According to JAXA, the launch was a demonstration experiment, that carried the TRICOM-1R -- a three-unit cubesat-- into lower Earth orbit, where it will observe the Earth with a set of cameras. Now in orbit, JAXA says that its status is "nominal." With its succ...