Japan training astronauts for long-term ISS missions
Posted: Tue, Jan 3, 2006, 8:32 AM ET (1332 GMT)
The Japanese space agency JAXA is training two of its astronauts for long-duration missions on the International Space Station, even though the agency is unsure when those astronauts will fly. The Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported Tuesday that Koichi Wakata has already started training in Russia while colleague Soichi Noguchi will begin training there in mid-January. JAXA hopes to fly the astronauts on three- to six-month missions on the ISS to coincide with the arrival of the components of JAXA's Kibo laboratory module for the station. The launch of Kibo remains uncertain, though, as NASA juggles the shuttle launch schedule; Kibo's components are currently planned for launch in 2007 and 2008. Both Noguchi and Wakata have previously flown on shuttle missions; Noguchi flew on the most recent shuttle mission in mid-2005.
The Japanese space agency JAXA is training two of its astronauts for long-duration missions on the International Space Station, even though the agency is unsure when those astronauts will fly. The Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported Tuesday that Koichi Wakata has already started training in Russia while colleague Soichi Noguchi will begin training there in mid-January. JAXA hopes to fly the astronauts on three- to six-month missions on the ISS to coincide with the arrival of the components of JAXA's Kibo laboratory module for the station. The launch of Kibo remains uncertain, though, as NASA juggles the shuttle launch schedule; Kibo's components are currently planned for launch in 2007 and 2008. Both Noguchi and Wakata have previously flown on shuttle missions; Noguchi flew on the most recent shuttle mission in mid-2005.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
New Virgin Galactic spaceplane arrives at Spaceport America
Posted: Sat, Oct 31 10:38 AM ET (1438 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, November 1
USAF successfully tests dropping SpaceX Starfall cargo drop pods from space — 2,200-pound capsule drops military supplies in the Pacific to test StarCraft-like supply drops
Toms Hardware — 8:19 am ET (1319 GMT) Why are US, Russia and China racing to put nuclear reactors on the moon?
Aljazeera — 8:19 am ET (1319 GMT) Four volunteers just finished a year in isolation in Houston, all in the name of space exploration
KHOU-TV Houston — 8:18 am ET (1318 GMT) Brian May reveals the Neil Armstrong remark that ‘petrified’ him
The Independent — 8:18 am ET (1318 GMT) ‘Spaceport’ sites raising hopes of development across Japan
Asahi Shimbun — 8:14 am ET (1314 GMT) |
