National News Wakata to be first Japanese ISS captain

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Astronaut Koichi Wakata will become the first Japanese to captain the International Space Station (ISS) when he takes command at the end of 2013, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said Feb. 17.

For his fourth space mission and his second long-term assignment, Wakata, 47, will stay aboard the ISS for six months after traveling there aboard Russia's Soyuz spacecraft. He will take command for the last two months of the mission, JAXA said.

"I'm truly grateful for being given such a great opportunity," Wakata said during a teleconference linked to JAXA's office in Tokyo and the space center in Houston, where he usually trains. "(My appointment as commander) is beyond what I expected. I feel greatly honored," he said. (Kyodo News)

若田さん、日本初のISS船長に

宇宙航空研究開発機構は２月17日、宇宙飛行士の若田光一さんが、日本人として初めて国際宇宙ステーションの船長を務めることが決まったと発表した。

Shukan ST: March 04, 2011

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