--- title: "NASA Proposed Sending Japanese Astronauts to the Moon" description: "NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine proposed to send Japanese astronauts to the Moon in the late 2020s as part of a joint plan with the US." date: "2020-01-02" modified: "2020-01-02" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-propose-japanese-astronauts-moon" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Moon" - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "Japan" - "JAXA" - "moon" - "NASA" - "the digest" --- # NASA Proposed Sending Japanese Astronauts to the Moon ![NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine proposed to send Japanese astronauts to the Moon in the late 2020s as part of a joint plan with the US.]() *\Image: NASA/Victor Tangermann\* ## Japan on the Moon NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine secretly proposed using US rockets to send Japanese astronauts to the Moon, [Japanese newspaper *The Mainichi* reports](), citing "multiple sources" familiar with the talks. According to the paper, Bridenstine made the proposal during an unofficial September 2019 visit in which he met with space industry leaders, including the head of the Japanese government's Space Policy Committee. Bridenstine reportedly encouraged attendees to consider a future in which Japanese astronauts joined Americans on the lunar surface. ## Project Artemis NASA has some very ambitious plans to return US astronauts to the Moon as part of the agency's Artemis program [by 2024](), using a research space station in the Moon's orbit called the [Lunar Gateway]() as a stepping stone. In May, Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe met with president Donald Trump, in part to [discuss]() a cooperation in space exploration. Less than four months later, NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency officially [announced]() they will work together under the Artemis program, with Japan assisting the US in building the Gateway. ## Race to the Moon According to *The Mainichi*, the move could also represent a way to keep China's space ambitions in check. The globe's most powerful nations are racing to make the Moon a strategic outpost — and China is [well on its way]() to make its first crewed mission to the Moon a reality. **READ MORE:** [US and Japan in talks to boost space ties, send Japanese astronauts to moon in 2020s]() \[*The Mainichi*\] **More on Japan's space efforts:** *[Japanese Rocket’s Launch Pad Inexplicably Bursts Into Flames]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()