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 After the success of HAKUCHO, Japan launched an X-ray astronomy satellite every four or five years: HINOTORI (solar X-ray) in 1981, TENMA in 1983, GINGA in 1987, and ASCA in 1993. Their observation performance was greatly improved with every generation. Though they are small satellites (the biggest is ASCA, at 400 kg), no other countries were conducting such a long series of successive observations, so we received international praise for our consistent research procedure.
The two great advantages of the research procedure we used are: 1) to be able to plan a research project in a cutting-edge field, and 2) to be able regularly to generate new results and to carry out development continuously, without allowing the research to stagnate. As a result, Japan's X-ray astronomy attracted many young scientists, and research organizations were established across the country.
We also actively collaborated with international partners. For GINGA, we worked with British scientists to build a large-scale X-ray detector, and we cooperated very closely with U.S. scientists on ASCA. The chance to launch a new scientific satellite is rare, and sharing capability through international collaboration produces improved technological performance. So I believe that the best way for Japan to take advantage of such opportunities is through contributing to international projects. As a matter of fact, more researchers around the world have become our collaborators, and our international reputation has been enhanced.
The United States used to lead the world in X-ray astronomy. However, their budget for space science has been reduced, because since 1980 the country has chosen to give priority to the space shuttle program. Also, after the tragedy of the space shuttle Challenger, there was a long spell of absence of scientific missions in the U.S. At that time, we helped American scientists by offering them part of GINGA's observation time. Thus, in the 1980s, Japan gradually started taking the initiative on X-ray astronomy observation, and has finally become the leader in the area, earning international recognition.
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