I am pleased to announce the safe return of the Crew Dragon spacecraft (Crew-11) carrying JAXA Astronaut YUI Kimiya, which splashed down safely today in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, U.S.A., following his long-duration mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

 This was Astronaut Yui’s second long-duration mission on the ISS. Together with his fellow crewmembers, he worked closely with the ground control team to successfully carry out the mission.

 During this mission, he embraced the mission theme, “Believe in a Bright Future and Take on New Challenges!”, and actively engaged in a wide range of activities with a view toward contributing to future international space exploration.
 Upon the arrival of Japan’s newly developed HTV‑X1 at the ISS, he was responsible for the ISS robotic arm capture operations, which he executed precisely in close coordination with the ground control team. This success enabled HTV-X1 to deliver essential supplies to the long-duration crew, including large system equipment, experimental devices, and fresh food, all while strongly demonstrating Japan’s technological capabilities and reliability to the international community.

 He also made consistent contributions to multiple experiments and technology demonstrations aboard the Japanese Experiment Module “Kibo”, including the installation of the Demonstration of Removing Carbon-dioxide System(DRCS), a technology verification unit with higher efficiency than previous systems. These achievements represent important outcomes that will contribute not only to improving life on Earth, but also to future lunar and Mars exploration.

 In addition to his assigned tasks and motivated by his desire to “give back to people around the world who support us from space,” Astronaut Yui shared images of Earth and various regions taken from the ISS, and worked to strengthen information dissemination in cooperation with the fields of Earth observation and disaster prevention.

 Although the return was earlier than originally planned, the fact that the crew supported one another and overcame challenges together shows the strong bonds that will support future space exploration. I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the swift response of all those involved, based on this spirit of cooperation and mutual support, and to once again pay my respects to the leadership of NASA, SpaceX, and our international partners.

 After returning to Earth, I expect Astronaut Yui to make use of the expertise gained during his ISS mission to support the training of Astronaut SUWA, who is scheduled for a long-duration ISS mission in 2027, as well as to contribute to advancing human activities in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) toward the post-ISS era and promoting research and development for future international space exploration.

 I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to our international partners, including NASA, ESA, CSA, and Roscosmos, as well as to the relevant domestic organizations and the people of Japan for their continued support and cooperation. Your steady encouragement and assistance is always highly appreciated.

January 15, 2026
YAMAKAWA Hiroshi,
President
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)