The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is the Japanese national aerospace and space agency. Through the merger of three previously independent organizations, JAXA was formed on 1 October 2003. JAXA is responsible for research, technology development and launch of satellites into orbit, and is involved in many more advanced missions such as asteroid exploration and possible human exploration of the Moon. Its motto is One JAXA and its corporate slogan is Explore to Realize.
SELENE, better known in Japan by its nickname Kaguya (かぐや), was the second Japanese lunar orbiter spacecraft following the Hiten probe. Produced by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) and the National Space Development Agency (NASDA), the spacecraft was launched on September 14, 2007. After successfully orbiting the Moon for a year and eight months, the main orbiter was instructed to impact on the lunar surface near the crater Gill on June 10, 2009.
Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS), also called Daichi, is a 3810 kg Japanese satellite launched in 2006. After five years of service, the satellite lost power and ceased communication with Earth, but remains in orbit.
This article outlines notable events occurring in 2006 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs. 2006 saw Brazil, Iran, and Sweden all get a national into space for the first time.
Akebono is a satellite to study aurora and Earth's magnetosphere environment. It was developed by Institute of Space and Astronautical Science and launched by M-3SII rocket on February 22, 1989.
Information Gathering Satellite are the satellites of the Japanese spy satellite program. It was started as a response to the 1998 North Korean missile test over Japan. The satellite program's main mission is to provide early warning of impending hostile launches in the region. This program is under the direct control of the cabinet. All Information Gathering Satellites have been launched by H-IIA rockets from the Tanegashima Space Center.
The Small Demonstration Satellite (SDS) is a spacecraft or satellite which is built as part of a JAXA programme to develop and demonstrate technology for and through small satellites. One of the mid-term goals is also to demonstrate formation flying. SDS-1 launched aboard an H-IIA rocket on 23 January 2009, as a secondary payload to GOSAT. The operation finished successfully on September 8, 2010.
JAXA Engineering Test Satellite ETS-VIII is the eighth technology test satellite in a series which started with ETS-1 in 1975 by NASDA. It was launched with the H-2A on December 18, 2006. ETS-VIII was developed by JAXA in cooperation with NICT and NTT. The aim of ETS-VIII is to enable satellite communications with small terminals. Unlike the Iridium satellites for mobile communication, ETS-VIII is positioned at GEO. However to fulfill the task the satellite must carry two very large antennas. It was the first use of the 204 configuration of the H-IIA launch vehicle.
The Epsilon Launch Vehicle, or Epsilon rocket, is a Japanese solid-fuel rocket designed to launch scientific satellites. It is a follow-on project to the larger and more expensive M-V rocket which was retired in 2006. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) began developing the Epsilon in 2007. It is capable of placing a 590 kg payload into Sun-synchronous orbit.
Arase, formerly known as Exploration of energization and Radiation in Geospace (ERG), is a scientific satellite to study the Van Allen belts. It was developed by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science of JAXA. While there was a scientist working on a similar project with the surname Arase, the satellite's name has nothing to do with him but instead named after a river beside the launch point.
Super Low Altitude Test Satellite (SLATS) or Tsubame is a JAXA satellite intended to demonstrate operations in very low Earth orbit, using ion engines to counteract aerodynamic drag from the Earth's atmosphere which is substantial at such lower orbital altitudes. It was launched on 23 December 2017, and decommissioned on 1 October 2019.
Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) is a lunar lander being developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The lander will demonstrate precision landing technology. By 2017, the lander was planned to be launched in 2021, but this has been subsequently delayed to 2022 due to delays in SLIM's rideshare mission, X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM).
TRICOM-1R, also known as Tasuki is a Japanese nanosatellite that was launched during the SS-520-5 sounding rocket test launch on 3 February 2018, with a mission to conduct store and forward data relay and earth observation using a set of cameras.
The X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission, formerly the X-ray Astronomy Recovery Mission (XARM), is an X-ray astronomy satellite of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to provide breakthroughs in the study of structure formation of the universe, outflows from galaxy nuclei, and dark matter. As the only international X-ray observatory project of its period, XRISM will function as a next generation space telescope in the X-ray astronomy field, similar to how the James Webb Space Telescope, Fermi Space Telescope, and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) Observatory are placed in their respective fields. The mission is a stopgap for avoiding a potential observation period gap between X-ray telescopes of the present and those of the future. Without XRISM, a blank period in X-ray astronomy may arise in the early 2020s due to the loss of Hitomi. During its formulation, XRISM/XARM was also known as the "ASTRO-H Successor" or "ASTRO-H2".
The Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration Program is a series of spacecraft missions for testing technology and ideas put forward by universities and private companies. The program demonstrates various experimental devices and technology in space by providing flight opportunities. It is managed by the JAXA Research and Development Directorate. According to JAXA, the goal of this program is to test high risk, innovative technology that will lead to the space industry gaining competitiveness in the international field.
RAPIS-1 is a satellite launched on 18 January 2019 which for over a year was used to test seven technology demonstration projects. RAPIS-1 was developed and operated by Axelspace Corporation, under the coordination of the Japanese space agency JAXA.
DRUMS is an experimental spacecraft that will test proximity operation near space debris. The microsatellite carries two 'mock space debris' which once deployed will be used as a target for demonstrating approach and contact.
KOSEN-1 is a technology demonstration satellite that will test the deployment of an antenna for observing radio waves emitted from the planet Jupiter. It is a 2U CubeSat, and carries a 7 m (23 ft) antenna. The CubeSat was jointly developed by the National Institute of Technologies in Japan. National Institute of Technologies is known as 'kosen' in Japanese. KOSEN-1 was launched on 9 November 2021 by an Epsilon launch vehicle, as part of the Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration-2 mission.
RAISE-2 is a smallsat for technology demonstration, part of the Japanese space agency JAXA's Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration Program. RAISE-2 was launched on 9 November 2021 as the main satellite of Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration-2. RAISE-2 was developed by Mitsubishi Electric.
