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Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting Co., Ltd., a think-tank and consultancy for a Japanese major financial group (“MURC”), and JTB Corporation, a major Japanese travel agency (“JTB”), have launched a trial to develop a one-stop service for local governments and private companies interested in the space industry to support their entry into the space industry. MURC and JTB will specifically provide the following services:1. Support for visits to spaceports and space industry centers for educational purposes;2. Research into the potential for expansion of the space industry in the region, and development of strategies and surveys that make use of the region’s strengths;3. Support for the organization of meetings and seminars ...

SORA-Q(Lunar Excursion Vehicle 2(LEV-2)), an ultra-compact transformable lunar robot developed by Japanese toy manufacturer TOMY Company, Ltd., together with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency(JAXA), Sony Group Corporation, and Doshisha University, is aiming for the Moon. ‘SORA(宙)’ means universe in Japanese. As for the letter “Q”, it is named after the English words “Question” and “Quest”, the Japanese word “Kyu” (reads as ‘q’) means sphere, and the robot’s silhouette that resemble the shape of the letter “Q” in the alphabet. The robot is ultra-compact, weighing approximately 250g, and transforms from a spherical shape with a diameter of approximately 8cm into a robot on the Moon’s surface. SORA-Q can move freely on its ...

The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) is a museum located in Washington, D.C. that exhibits collections related to aircraft and spacecraft. NASM closed in March 2022 and partially reopened in October 2022 with eight new and renovated galleries. The rest of the building is still transforming, and the full building is anticipated to reopen in 2026. In the renovated galleries regarding space, you can learn about the history of space exploration in the U.S. (reaching the moon, exploring Mars, etc.). Also, you can find a number of iconic objects such as the command module Columbia and Neil Armstrong’s Apollo space suit. Further, they showcase the Artemis Project as a ...

To make a sustainable space base, humans are needed to build a sustainable agricultural system in the outer space. And to make this real, some studies and practices are taking place. The practices by the Lunar Farming Concept Studying Working Group from Japan are exactly the one of those. Its report of 2019 shows us that some agricultural plants are selected for space farming; rice plants, soy beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, strawberries, cucumbers, lettuces and the others (mustard spinaches, for example). Compared to the earthy agriculture, there are less atmospheric pressure, less gravity, but more direct rays. Therefore, we are facing some important issues to overcome. And the study ...

While the role of commercial space systems is extending in security and economic society in Japan, there are growing concerns about cybersecurity due to the spread of digital technology in space systems and the advancing complexity of networks. Considering this situation, the Japanese government released the Guidelines on Cybersecurity Measures for Commercial Space Systems Ver 1.0 on 21 July 2022 to encourage business operators to take voluntary cybersecurity measures. The guidelines cover earth observation satellites and ground systems (satellite operation facilities, satellite data utilization facilities, development and manufacturing facilities) mainly operated by commercial companies, and cover the design, development, manufacturing, operation, maintenance, and disposal phases of satellite systems. The guidelines ...

NIHONBASHI SPACE WEEK 2022 has begun in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, Japan!This event is one of the largest space business exhibitions in Japan, where domestic and international space business players gather in Tokyo. JSLA will be at the event together with Mr. Yamasaki of Uchida & Samejima Law Firm who will be participating as a mentor for “NEDO Supply Chain Data Challenge Finalists”, and other prominent members of JSLA will also be at the event. If you see us, please come and say hello. We look forward to seeing you at the forefront of the space business! Homma Yumiko（本間 由美子）a member of JSLA and an attorney at GVA LPChttps://japan-space-law-association.org/honma-yumiko/https://gvalaw.jp/en/members/yhonma (Source: NIHONBASHI SPACE ...

ispace, inc., a global lunar resource development company in Japan, is planning to launch its lunar lander soon. If they are successful in landing the lander on the moon on the expected schedule, that will be a world first achievement that a private company alone has landed its lander. In addition, ispace has received a license from the Japanese government to conduct business activity on the moon under Japan’s Space Resources Act. Based on the license, they will collect regolith on the moon and transfer ownership of such resources to NASA. The launch was scheduled on November 28, 2022, on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket; however, the launch attempt has been ...

Since 1992-the year of Convention on Biological Diversity, the biodiversity has become more and more important in the world. And how we figure out the number of the wild species is very fundamental to achieve the goals of CBD. Some species are counted by seeing visually, and some by speculation. Both methods rely on the data we inherited from the past. However, it is yet a little challenging to humans to grasp the entire number of them, because many ecologies are still hidden to us. Therefore, the new tech of the biodiversity map must be an innovated tool for nations to grasp the numbers of wild species and make more ...

The Japanese Diet passed the Space Resources Act on June 15, 2021 and the Act came into force on December 23, 2021. The Act allows persons (including private entities) to explore, extract and use “space resources” meaning water, minerals and other natural resources that exist in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies. Under the Act, a person who intends to obtain a license (which is stipulated in Article 20, paragraph (1) of Space Activity Act) for the control of spacecraft which is exercised over a spacecraft for the purpose of the exploration and development of space resources (such license is defined as the “License for the Exploration ...

On Oct. 7, 2022, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd., one of the major Japanese insurance companies (“Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance”), and ispace, inc., a Japanese lunar exploration company (“ispace”), announced that they jointly developed the world’s first “lunar insurance” that seamlessly covers the entire process from the launch of the rocket to the landing on the moon. This lunar insurance was developed with ispace’s lunar development mission in mind, but it appears that Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance intends to add the same type of insurance to its product lineup and offer it to companies that are planning to conduct lunar development projects. According to published information, this lunar insurance is designed to ...