Japanese astronauts will ride on NASA Artemis missions to the moon, and potentially even reach the surface, amid an interagency push to expand lunar exploration.
President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida confirmed that commitment Monday (May 23) during a meeting in Tokyo, NASA and the White House said in separate announcements.
A Japanese astronaut will visit NASA’s planned Gateway moon-orbiting space station, and the two leaders also said they have a “shared ambition” to put a Japanese astronaut on the moon, according to NASA officials.
, NASA officials stated(opens in new tab).
“I’m excited about the work we’ll do together on the Gateway station around the moon and look forward to the first Japanese astronaut joining us in the mission to the lunar surface under the Artemis program,” Biden stated in the agency announcement.
Japan’s space work is part of a larger set of agreements between that country and the United States on matters ranging from 5G cellular networks to cybersecurity to science and technology collaborations.
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