I recognize that the aerospace field has been an active topic of conversation both domestically and internationally this summer. The main topics related to JAXA include the start of Astronaut Furukawa’s long-duration stay on the International Space Station (ISS) and the launch of the X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) and the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) by the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 47 (H-IIA F47). These events have received a lot of coverage in the press, etc.
We have been informed that Astronaut Furukawa, who is in orbit, is vigorously pursuing various missions. We have been also informed that all technical demonstrations for the "JEM Water Recovery System," for which related technologies have been taken over since 2019, have completed and its last sample was successfully collected. I believe that the next-generation water recovery system has taken an important step toward the era of international space exploration.
We will report detailed information on the status of various on-orbit experiments to be conducted going forward on the JAXA web pages (Humans in Space News and Furukawa’s Mission special page). I expect that Astronaut Furukawa will continue to steadily proceed with various missions.
For XRISM, we are in the process of verifying the functions of the satellite’s onboard equipment during the commissioning period of approximately 3 months. SLIM is also in its Earth orbit phase, which is the period for conducting functional checks of onboard equipment and preparations to carry out the orbit control into the lunar transfer orbit. Each operation is progressing well.
On September 24, the asteroid sample from Bennu collected by OSIRIS-REx as part of NASA's asteroid sample return mission returned to Earth and the sample return capsule was recovered. I would like to pay tribute to all NASA team members who successfully conducted the recovery operation without a hitch. The samples are currently undergoing curation at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. A portion of the Bennu samples will also be distributed to JAXA in exchange for the “Hayabusa2” Ryugu samples through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between JAXA and NASA. JAXA would like to proceed with the preparation for the acceptance of the OSIRIS-REx return sample.

As part of the investigation into the cause of the launch failure of the first H3 Launch Vehicle (H3 TF1), we determined that the second stage engine had failed to ignite due to a short circuit in the exciter of the second stage engine or in the second stage propulsion system controller (PSC2). We reported the direction of countermeasures based on the analysis of the factors behind the occurrence of this phenomenon to the Safety and Investigation Subcommittee of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on September 25. Based on the suggestions from the subcommittee members, we will take measures to ensure a successful launch of the H3 Launch Vehicle TF2.

The first half of the firing test for the qualification of the LE-9 engine for the H3 Launch Vehicle TF2 and beyond was conducted three times since August 10, and the detailed evaluation of the acquired data and confirmation of the engine for the test are currently in progress. We plan to conduct an acceptance test of the LE-9 engine to be mounted on the H3 Launch Vehicle TF2 in October, followed by the second half of the firing test for qualification.

In the investigation of the cause of the explosion and fire accident during the second-stage motor ground firing test of the Epsilon S Launch Vehicle, we narrowed down the scenarios that had led to the explosion to two factors: “propellant combustion anomaly” and “thermal insulation failure.” We plan to further narrow down the cause of the explosion through analysis and verification by testing.

The 29th Session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-29) was held in Jakarta, Indonesia, for four days from September 19 to 22 under the theme "Accelerating Space Economies through Regional Partnership.” More than 500 people from 27 countries and regions participated in a lively exchange between the public and private sectors.

During the first two days, five working group sessions were held: "Satellite Applications," "Space Education," "Enhancement of Space Capability," "Space Frontier," and "Space Policy and Law,” as well as the "Space Industrial Workshop.” In addition, a plenary session was held during the latter two days, which was attended by the heads and representatives of space agencies from various countries. On the final day, in addition to these efforts, a joint statement was adopted that summarized the results of each session of the plenary session and the speeches made by the heads of space agencies from each country. In the joint statement, enhancing space economy, achieving space sustainability, and minimizing the impact of climate change and natural disasters were shared as common interests/objectives in the Asia-Pacific region. Diverse public-private partnerships and the importance of nurturing the next generation of space professionals in order to further strengthen our space economy were also confirmed.

The latest APRSAF attracted more than 290 registered participants, the largest ever for the "Space Industrial Workshop.” I feel that the APRSAF is becoming a networking forum where “a private company and a space agency,” “a private company and a government,” and “private companies themselves” can interact each other.

In addition, I also met with the heads of the space agencies of the participating countries during the session. During the meeting with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) of Indonesia, which is the host country, a memorandum of cooperation on space cooperation for peaceful purposes between JAXA and BRIN was signed.

I hope that the APRSAF will continue to help accelerate the space economy in the Asia-Pacific region by bringing together diverse players from government, space agencies, industry, and academia to build new partnerships.
The APRSAF is co-organized by three organizations such as JAXA, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the host country (in turn). The latest APRSAF was co-organized by Indonesia’s BRIN, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
The 2024 APRSAF-30 is scheduled to be held in Australia (Perth) for November 26-29. The 2025 APRRSAF-31 is scheduled to be held in the Philippines.

Last but not least, as the week comes to an end, the year will soon turn into October. Twenty years have passed since JAXA was founded on October 1, 2003. I would like to thank the news media and many others for their support and cooperation over the past 20 years. JAXA will continue to steadily implement its responsibilities one by one. Thank you for your continued support.