Joe Biden Announces Japan’s Significant Role in NASA’s Moon Landing and Beyond
Joe Biden Announces Japan’s Significant Role in NASA’s Moon Landing and Beyond
During a state visit by Japan’s Prime Minister, US President Joe Biden announced that a Japanese astronaut will be the first non-American to set foot on the moon. This declaration signifies a new milestone in the relationship between the United States and Japan, extending their ties to even the lunar surface. As part of NASA’s Artemis program, not only will a Japanese astronaut make history, but the United States also aims to send a woman and a person of color to the moon, marking a departure from the past where only white male American astronauts have walked on the lunar surface.
Further strengthening this international collaboration, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Japan’s Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Masahito Moriyama, signed an agreement to enable sustainable human exploration of the moon. Japan will design, develop, and operate a pressurized rover for both crewed and uncrewed lunar exploration. The rover will provide astronauts with the ability to travel further and work for extended periods on the lunar surface. NASA will support this endeavor by launching and delivering the rover to the moon and providing two opportunities for Japanese astronauts to travel to the lunar surface.
President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida also announced a new military alliance, reflecting a shared commitment to addressing common challenges and promoting a free and open world. This package of agreements asserts the importance of the alliance between the US and Japan for peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region. Japan is also the top foreign investor in the US and a significant investor in US technologies, further solidifying the ties between the two nations.
Japan’s Science Minister Masahito Moriyama is set to sign a deal with NASA to affirm Tokyo’s cooperation on the Artemis program. Japan plans to contribute a lunar rover for surface exploration, which is being developed by Toyota Motor Corp. This rover will be capable of traversing rough terrain, collecting samples, and it can be driven by astronauts without a spacesuit and used for sleeping. Japan will also transport supplies to a lunar-orbiting outpost, called Gateway, which is planned under the Artemis program. This cooperation will not only strengthen Japan’s involvement in global space exploration efforts but also pave the way for further cooperation in space exploration between Japan and NASA.
