“ADRAS-J,” a commercial debris inspection demonstration satellite of Astroscale Japan Inc., which conducts the Phase I of JAXA’s Commercial Removal of Debris Demonstration (CRD2) mission, has been continuing its mission operations in orbit since its launch in February this year.

On April 26, Astroscale Japan Inc. released an image captured by ADRAS-J while approaching a non-cooperative target, space debris.
CRD2 as a JAXA mission is a phased plan for in-orbit demonstration. One of the objectives of CRD2 Phase I is to acquire images that reveal the motion and deterioration of debris that has been in orbit for a long period, for which there is little information available worldwide, and this image represents one of the initial results.

In order to achieve the CRD2 Phase I Mission, JAXA will continue to make efforts through its technical support.
The technologies, knowledge, etc. obtained in Phase I will be taken over to the challenge of the in-orbit demonstration of large debris removal planned for the next "Phase II Mission" of CRD2.

The “EarthCARE” satellite, a cloud aerosol radiation mission jointly developed by Japan and the European Space Agency (ESA), is scheduled for launch in late May.
It has been 20 years since the mission was selected by ESA in 2004, and after a long development plan, the launch of the EarthCARE satellite is finally around the corner.
JAXA is currently working with ESA on final launch preparations at the launch site in the United States, at the European Space Operations Centre in Germany, and in Japan.
The EarthCARE satellite is the first mission by ESA and Japan to develop a single Earth observation satellite. The satellite equipped with the Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR), which was developed by JAXA in cooperation with the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) to observe the internal structure of clouds with high sensitivity. CPR measure the vertical speed of clouds from the satellite for the first time in the world. The development of the EarthCARE satellite and CPR has been made possible by the efforts of many people, including Earth observation satellite data users, scientists, and researchers. I would like to thank once again all those who have cooperated with the development.

I understand that the detailed launch date and time are still being worked out. The launch date and time will be released as soon as information is received it from ESA, or Space-X that will launch the EarthCARE satellite on Falcon 9 rocket.
Everyone involved in the EarthCARE/CPR project will continue to brace themselves up for the launch and post-launch operations of the satellite.

JAXA Space Education Center was formed on May 1, 2005, and this month marks the 20th anniversary of its activities. From the very beginning, the center’s motto has been “Space ignites spirits in children,” and our goal is not to “learn about space” but to “learn with space,” in other words, to provide children with opportunities to nurture their “curiosity,” “sense of adventure,” and the “spirit of craftsmanship” through learning using aerospace as educational material.
One of the main features of the center is that JAXA provides support for classes and initiatives implemented by teachers and leaders involved in the development of the next generation of human resources in the field of formal education and informal education. We believe that the main actors are the children, but also the teachers and leaders. This means that in order for teachers and leaders to effectively use “aerospace” in “education,” we provide necessary space educational materials and help them devise ways to do so.

Under this philosophy, the activities of the Space Education Center are built on the following three pillars.
The first is “Formal Education Support.” The second is “Informal Education Support.” In both cases, the focus is on supporting teachers and leaders in creating their own classes. The third is “Experience-Based Learning Opportunities (International and Domestic).” This program aims to help young people gain experience and broaden their horizons by offering JAXA's unique experience programs in the field of aerospace, in cooperation with not only space agencies in Japan but with other space institutions worldwide.

I would like to introduce the production of educational materials as an example of our recent major activities.
Last year, we created an educational material called “Lunarcraft,” which reproduces the environment of the Moon by using the game “Minecraft,” in which students live in a virtual space metaverse composed of 3D blocks. This is an educational material that can be used in both formal education and informal education.
“Lunarcraft” uses lunar topographic data obtained by the “lunar orbiter KAGUYA” and reproduces as much as possible the terrain, including the landing site of SLIM, as well as other environmental factors such as the lunar gravity, for students’ simulated experience of the lunar world. It is also possible to play developmentally, such as constructing a building in a virtual space and using programming to improve efficiency in doing so. I hope that students will use their “imagination and creativity” at school, in their community, and at home to create their own unique lunar world. I would also be happy if this software would provide an opportunity to communicate widely with teachers, friends, family, and everyone in the world.
Incidentally, the Japanese version of Lunarcraft was released in December 2023 and the English version in February 2024 respectively. They have been downloaded approximately 7,000 times as of early May. The English version has also been introduced in the web media in about 20 countries in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

In addition, JAXA's activities to use its experimental module “Kibo” of the International Space Station (ISS) in education, including the “Space Seeds,” a program to cultivate basil seeds recovered from the ISS, which was conducted by the Space Education Center in cooperation with the Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate for children in Japan, received the Prize for Science and Technology (in the Science and Technology Promotion Category) at the 2024 Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. JAXA's wide range of human resource development activities were highly evaluated by the ministry.
We will continue to focus on devising support according to the characteristics of “educational sites” such as school, community, and family, as well as providing educational materials that meet the characteristics of various sites.

As I mentioned earlier about EarthCARE/CPR, there are many JAXA missions scheduled for May and June.
Preparations for the launch scheduled for June 30 of Advanced Land Observing Satellite-4 “DAICHI-4” (ALOS-4) aboard the third H3 Launch Vehicle (H3 F3: Flight No.3) are progressing smoothly at the Tanegashima Space Center.
Astronaut FURUKAWA Satoshi, who returned to Earth from the International Space Station in February this year, is scheduled to return to Japan temporarily in June. A mission debriefing session for the general public is planned for June 23 while Astronaut FURUKAWA is staying in Japan.
In addition, Space Exploration Symposium 2024 will take place on June 12, 2024 in the field of space exploration, in which activities are proceeding at full swing. At this year's symposium, we are planning to discuss such issues as the efforts of an all-Japan system in which industry, academia, and government collaborate in order for Japan to exert its international presence.
The topics I have mentioned are just the main ones, and JAXA’s entire staff united as one will work together to achieve our missions, one by one and steadily.