Koichi Wakata
From The Space Library
 Koichi Wakata | |
| Birth Name | Koichi Wakata |
|---|---|
| Birth Date | 1963 |
| Occupation | Astronaut, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), (Ph.D.) |
Contents |
Personal Data
Born in 1963, in Saitama, Japan. Married and has one child. Enjoys flying, baseball, and snow skiing.
Education
Graduated from Urawa High School, Saitama, in 1982; received a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering in 1987, a master of science degree in applied mechanics in 1989 and a doctorate in aerospace engineering in 2004, all from Kyushu University.
Experience
Dr. Wakata joined Japan Airlines (JAL) in April 1989. He was assigned to the Base Maintenance Department, Narita, Chiba, where he was designated as a structural engineer. From July 1991 to May 1992, he was assigned to the Airframe Group, Systems Engineering Office, Engineering Department of JAL. During his tenure with JAL, Dr. Wakata was involved in multiple research and engineering projects in the fields of structural integrity of transport aircraft, fatigue fracture, corrosion prevention and the environmental effects on fuselage polished aluminum skin on B-747 aircraft. He was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASDA in June 1992. A multi-engine and instrument-rated pilot, Dr. Wakata has logged more than 2,600 hours in a variety of aircraft.
Spaceflight Experience
NASA/JAXA EXPERIENCE: Dr. Wakata reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1992. He completed one year of training and was qualified for assignment as a mission specialist on the space shuttle. Dr. Wakata's technical assignments in the Astronaut Office have included: Mission Development Branch (April 1993 to February 1995), Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL) (April to October 1994), Robotics Branch (March 1996 to July 2006), Extravehicular Activities (EVA) Branch (May 2001 to April 2006), and Chief, ISS Operations Branch (March 2010 to February 2011). Since April 2010, Dr. Wakata has been serving as the chief of the JAXA Astronaut Group. During the STS-85 mission (August 7 to 19, 1997), Dr. Wakata was the NASDA Assistant Payload Operations Director for the Manipulator Flight Demonstration, a robotic arm experiment for the Japanese Experiment Module of the International Space Station (ISS). He operated the robotic arm system on NASDA's Engineering Test Satellite VII in the tele-operation robotics experiments in 1999. He was qualified as a NASA robotics instructor astronaut in December 2000, and as a NASA EVA instructor astronaut in July 2008. In July 2006, Dr. Wakata served as the commander of the 10th NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) mission, a 7-day undersea expedition at the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration's Aquarius habitat located off the coast of Florida. In December 2006, he completed flight engineer training for the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Dr. Wakata has been assigned as a flight engineer to the Expedition 38 crew and the commander to the Expedition 39 crew and is scheduled to fly to the ISS aboard Soyuz 37 in late November 2013. STS-72, Endeavour (January 11 to 20, 1996): Dr. Wakata flew as the first Japanese mission specialist on this nine-day mission during which the six-member crew retrieved the Space Flyer Unit (launched from Japan 10 months earlier), deployed and retrieved the OAST-Flyer and conducted two spacewalks to demonstrate and evaluate techniques to be used in the assembly of the International Space Station. The STS-72 mission was completed in 142 orbits, traveling 3.7 million miles in 8 days, 22 hours and 40 seconds. STS-92, Discovery (October 11 to 24, 2000): Dr. Wakata became the first Japanese astronaut to work on the ISS assembly on this 13-day mission during which the seven-member crew attached the Z1 Truss and Pressurized Mating Adapter 3 to the ISS using Discovery's robotic arm and performed four space walks to configure these elements. This expansion of the ISS opened the door for future assembly missions and prepared the station for its first resident crew. The STS-92 mission was accomplished in 202 orbits, traveling 5.3 million miles in 12 days, 21 hours, 40 minutes and 25 seconds. STS-119, ISS Expeditions 18, 19 and 20, and STS-127 (March 15 to July 31, 2009): Dr.Wakata flew aboard Discovery on the STS-119 mission during which the seven-member crew installed the final starboard truss segment S6 to the ISS and performed three space walks. During the 4-1/2 months aboard the ISS, he served as a flight engineer and the JAXA Science Officer on the crews of Expeditions 18, 19 and 20. His duties included a variety of experiments and maintenance tasks. In addition, Dr. Wakata operated all the current human space robotics systems - Canadarm on the shuttle, Canadarm2, Dextre and Kibo's robotic arm on the ISS. Dr. Wakata became the first Japanese astronaut to serve as a resident ISS crewmember as well as to fly aboard Soyuz TMA spacecraft during the Soyuz TMA-14 relocation on the ISS. Expedition 20 marked the first ISS expedition to expand the crew size from three to six members with representative crewmembers from all the ISS partner agencies. The seven member crew of STS-127 completed the final assembly of the Japanese Kibo modules of the ISS and performed five space walks. Dr. Wakata returned to Earth aboard Endeavour with the crew of STS-127. During STS-119, Expeditions 18, 19 and 20 and STS-127, Dr. Wakata stayed in space for 137 days, 15 hours and 5 minutes. A veteran of three space flights, Dr. Wakata has logged a total of 159 days, 10 hours, 46 minutes and 5 seconds in space.
Special Honours
Minister of State for Science and Technology Commendation (1996). Special awards from Saitama Prefecture (1996, 2009) and Omiya City (1996). National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) Outstanding Service Award (1996). Diplome pilote-cosmonaute de l' URSS V.M. Komarov (1997, 2001). NASA Exceptional Service Medal (2001). Japan Society for Biological Sciences in Space Distinguished Service Award (2001). Japanese Foreign Minister's Certificate of Commendation (2004). JAXA Outstanding Service Award (2009). NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal (2009). Japanese Prime Minister's Certificate of Commendation (2009). Russian Medal of Merit for Space Exploration (2011).
Other Information
May-11
