President Joe Biden said on May 23 that a Japanese astronaut will board NASA’s Artemis mission to the moon, as the United States and Japan seek to expand civil space cooperation.
During a press briefing with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo, Biden said the partners are committed to sending a Japanese astronaut to the Gateway Station, a planned international space station that would orbit the moon.
“I’m excited at the work we will do together on the Gateway Station around the moon, and I look forward to the first Japanese astronaut joining us on the mission to the lunar surface under the Artemis program,” Biden said….