Hokkaido: A rocket launched by a Taiwanese company from Japan's northern island of Hokkaido failed shortly after liftoff on Saturday, marking the first attempt by a foreign firm to conduct a launch from Japanese territory.

According to Anadolu Agency, the rocket lifted off at around 11.40 am local time (0240GMT) but did not reach its intended altitude of 100 kilometers (62 miles), as reported by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. Video footage captured the rocket briefly ascending before it drifted and crashed near the launch site.

Although the rocket was expected to fall into the Pacific Ocean, the second stage of the vehicle instead landed within a 1.2-kilometer (0.74-mile) radius of the launch area. Fortunately, there were no injuries or property damage reported as a result of the incident.

The rocket was developed by Taiwan-based TiSPACE and its Japanese subsidiary JTSpace. The primary objective of the launch was to test the rocket's engine performance. Had the mission achieved the 100-kilometer altitude mark, it could have paved the way for launching Taiwanese satellites using domestically developed launch vehicles.