● Investigation Team for the Combustion Anomaly During the Static Firing Test of the Epsilon S Second-Stage Motor

JAXA has established an investigation team for the combustion anomaly that occurred during the static firing test of the Epsilon S second-stage motor. Headed by Director Okada, the team members are collaborating to determine the cause of the incident and formulate countermeasures, considering all possibilities. To this end, they are analyzing and evaluating the test data, as well as verifying the design, manufacturing, and inspection data. We deeply regret the inconvenience and concerns caused to the general public and all those involved. Taking this matter seriously, I have instructed the team to identify the cause and implement countermeasures at the earliest time possible.
The updates on the progress of the investigations, following the press conference on December 5, will be provided at the second press conference on December 25.

● Preparation Status of MICHIBIKI No. 6 (Quasi-Zenith Satellite) to Be Launched Aboard the 5th H3 Launch Vehicle

We verified and assessed the impact of the aforementioned accident on the Solid Rocket Booster of H3 (SRB-3), and determined that there are no concerns regarding its use. As a result, MICHIBIKI No. 6, Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZS-6) is scheduled to be launched aboard the 5th H3 Launch Vehicle on February 1, 2025. We will work closely with local communities and relevant companies to ensure steady preparation for the launch.

● JAXA Astronaut ONISHI Takuya’s Long-Duration Mission on the International Space Station (ISS) and Appointment as ISS Commander

JAXA Astronaut ONISHI Takuya is steadily preparing for his long-duration mission on the ISS. Currently, he is training at the Johnson Space Center in the U.S. with three other crew members who will be aboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft (Crew-10). We have heard that his training is progressing smoothly.
Astronaut ONISHI will be designated as ISS commander during this flight. We expect him to demonstrate leadership as the commander in orbit, leading the team to accomplish its mission and ensuring the safety of the crew members on the ISS. Naturally, it goes without saying that the JAXA Flight Control Team (JFCT) members and those involved in research, experiments, and other missions, who support Astronaut ONISHI and the other ISS crew members, are also devoting themselves to the preparations in the efforts to achieve missions and demonstrate Japan’s presence.
On December 17, NASA announced that the launch of the Crew-10 would be postponed to no earlier than late March 2025. We will continue to provide updates on the latest information regarding the launch.

● Space Strategic Fund Program: Determination of Implementing Agencies for Technology Development

The next topic is about the current status of the applications for the Space Strategy Fund public call.
JAXA is inviting applications for 22 technology development themes from private companies, universities, national research and development agencies, and other organizations, based on the government’s basic policy and implementation policy regarding the Space Strategy Fund.
Since October 25, we have been announcing the selected organizations that will work on the themes in succession. Today, I will give a brief overview of the applications we have received.
Among all the applications, 55% are from private companies and 36% are from educational institutions including universities, both accounting for about 90% of the total.
Breaking down the applications from private companies reveals that 46% are from start-up companies, accounting for 25% of the total.
Additionally, in terms of track records in the space sector, 60% of the private companies have business backgrounds in the sector, while 40% do not.
This reflects the characteristics of the Space Strategy Fund that supports a wide range of organizations, including private companies, educational institutions such as universities, as well as research and development agencies, based on their technology readiness levels (TRLs) of technological development.
The public call is also open to joint proposals by multiple organizations, which account for 65% of the total. Many of such proposals are for technological development through industry-academia-government collaboration and open innovation.
The submitted proposals have been reviewed by a panel of external experts, who have decided on the implementing agencies for 14 themes as of today.
Going forward, we will proceed with reviewing proposals for the remaining themes and decide on the implementing agencies in due course. Additionally, we will establish the next-term Space Strategy Fund under the government’s FY 2024 supplementary budget that has recently been enacted, and steadily continue operations to fulfill our role as an industry-academia-government nodal point.

Next, I will discuss topic related to Earth observation.
Addressing Climate Change is a global-scale, imminent issue for humanity. As part of global measures, JAXA and other organizations in countries worldwide are using Earth observation satellites, which provide the advantage of observing the Earth from space, to acquire, analyze, and study a wide range of observation data. Monitoring trace gases is one such initiative.
This time, the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) in Japan, the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), have agreed to continue their cooperation on the mutual comparison of observation data. This follows the reaffirmation of the importance of the Japan-U.S. cooperation to date, such as improving observation data accuracy through cross-calibration of satellite data on trace gases, and understanding the changes in their global distribution.
The original agreement was on the sharing of observation data from Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT), the world’s first satellite dedicated to the observation of trace gases developed and launched by Japan in 2009, its successor GOSAT-2, Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) developed and launched by the U.S. as part of its carbon observation satellite series in 2014, and OCO-3, which was installed on the ISS in 2019. This time, the agreement is expanded to include observation data from Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of POllution (TEMPO) launched by NASA in 2023 and Global Observing SATellite for Greenhouse gases and Water cycle (GOSAT-GW) being developed by Japan, aiming to further improve the observation accuracy and uniformity, and to accelerate the mutual exchange and use of observation data. Through this cooperation, we will continue to enhance Japan-U.S. contributions to achieving trace gas emission targets on a global scale and addressing climate change.

Here, let me introduce an example that showcases an international recognition of the four-party collaborative activities.
Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (commonly known as COP) mandates each signatory country to prepare and report an inventory of its trace gas emissions, based on the Paris Agreement adopted at the conference. As a scientific basis to improve the accuracy of these inventories reported by signatory countries, satellite-based trace gas observation data was recognized as useful for the first time, being included in the “2019 Refinement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories” adopted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in 2019. The four-party collaboration dates back long before this milestone.
Before the usefulness of satellite observation data was finally mentioned in 2019, there had been a long journey undertaken by researchers and engineers from Japan and the U.S. involved in Earth observation research.
Following the initiations of both GOSAT and OCO projects in the early 2000s, research and development was conducted to improve satellite observation accuracy under the Japan-U.S. collaboration framework. Even after the launches of these satellites, both countries continued to collaborate by exchanging observation data for mutual comparison, verification, and technological discussions, to achieve purposes including the establishment of processing methods to eliminate errors in observation data, which are caused by various factors such as clouds, dust, and the atmosphere during observation. As a result, we achieved observation of trace gases from space, which had been considered unfeasible before GOSAT’s success, along with an improvement in observation accuracy. These achievements are thanks to researchers and engineers who earnestly addressed the challenges through ongoing collaborative activities.

As I mentioned earlier, addressing climate change is a global-scale, imminent issue for humanity. We will further strive for both Japan and the U.S. to maintain a strong international presence in this field.

The 30th Session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-30) was held in Perth, Australia, for four days from November 26 to 29 under the theme "Collaborating to Build a Sustainable and Responsible Regional Space Sector.” APRSAF-30 saw the participation of 560 attendees from 36 countries and regions. During the first two days, APRSAF organized five working groups and one workshop. The five working groups are:
(1) Satellite Applications for Societal Benefit Working Group (SAWG), which aims to promote the use of data from Earth observation satellites and navigation satellites to address issues in the fields of disaster management, environmental monitoring, and climate change, as well as to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs;
(2) Space Education for All Working Group (SE4AWG), which aims to provide educational opportunities in both school and social settings on a wide range of space-related topics, and to enhance STEAM education;
(3) Enhancement of Space Capability Working Group (SCWG), which aims to improve the capabilities of space technology development in the Asia-Pacific region;
(4) Space Frontier Working Group (SFWG), which aims to support future space exploration missions and the pursuit of space frontiers by utilizing the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo on the ISS; and
(5) Space Policy and Law Working Group (SPLWG), which aims to enhance the capacity in space policy and law, a vital factor for promoting space-related activities. In addition to the above, APRSAF holds Space Industry Workshop (SIWS) to discuss issues related to space industry development in the Asia-Pacific region. Over the last two days, this workshop took place, allowing each participant to focus on sustainable socio-economic development and contribution in the Asia-Pacific region and to actively exchange opinions between the public and private sectors. It helped me reaffirm the importance of APRSAF’s initiatives.

APRSAF, established in 1993 based on a proposal from Japan, has been held almost annually, co-hosted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), JAXA, and related organizations in host countries.
Over the 30 years since its establishment, APRSAF has grown from its first forum, which was attended by 60 space agency representatives from 14 countries, to a forum now attended by more than 500 participants from 30 countries and regions. These participants came from a wide range of fields, including space agencies (about 30%), governments (about 10%), industry (about 20%), and universities and other educational institutions (about 20%). With such a diversity, APRSAF has contributed to addressing social issues such as disaster management in the Asia-Pacific region and climate change, building networks for space-related activities in the region, promoting international cooperation and space diplomacy in collaboration with governments, providing networking opportunities between the public and private sectors, and creating business opportunities.
To maintain and further advance these features, APRSAF, at its milestone 30th forum, adopted a vision to serve as a platform for promoting co-creation activities with diverse partners and contributing to the economic development in the Asia-Pacific region.

Furthermore, APRSAF-30 was co-hosted by the Australian Space Agency (ASA) alongside Japan, and was held during the Western Australia Space Week with the support from the government of Western Australia. Indo Pacific Space and Earth Conference (IPSEC), an international conference led by Western Australia’s government, and APRSAF organized joint exhibition and networking opportunities, which attracted over 700 participants who engaged in proactive exchanges. I hope that APRSAF will continue to help accelerate economic development in the Asia-Pacific region by bringing together diverse players from governments, space agencies, industry, universities, and other organizations to connect and build new partnerships, through collaboration with host countries and the exchanges enabled by such opportunities.
The 2025 APRSAF-31 is scheduled to be held in the Philippines (Cebu Island) from November 18 to 21. The 2026 APRRSAF-32 is planned to take place in Thailand.