News

JAXA Astronaut Selection Attracts More Than 4,000 Applicants

By Doug Messier

Parabolic Arc

April 6, 2022

Filed under astronauts, human spaceflight, International Space Station, ISS, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Japanese Experiment Module, JAXA, Kibo module, Lunar Gateway, space station

JAXA astronaut Sochi Noguchi is pictured inside the newly arrived upgraded SpaceX Cargo Dragon vehicle on December 7, 2020. Safety goggles and masks are required when a crew member opens the hatch and enters a new spacecraft for the first time due to dust and debris that may have been dislodged during the ascent to space. (Credits: NASA)

TOKYO (JAXA PR) — The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is a new candidate for Japanese astronauts assuming activities on the International Space Station (ISS), the Japanese Experiment Module “Kibo”, the lunar manned base “Gateway”, and the lunar surface. The deadline for recruitment is noon on Monday, April 4, 2022. We are pleased to inform you that we have received the final application as shown below.

Total number of applications: 4,127

Reference

The total number of applications is the highest ever (about 4.3 times the previous highest of 963)
3,204 males (77.6%), 919 females (22.3%), and 4 other selected people (0.1%)

Future Plans

The 0th selection English test will be held on May 8th (Sunday), and only those who have passed the English test will be held a general liberal arts test on May 29th (Sunday). Please see the application guidelines for the schedule after the first selection. https://astro-mission.jaxa.jp/astro_selection/item/Application.pdf

Breakdown of recruitment results by astronaut candidate by age group

Applications by Age Group	Number	Percent
20s or younger	811	(19.7%)
30s	1,850	(44.8%)
40s	973	(23.6%)
50s	424	(10.3%)
60s and over	69	(1.7%)
Total:	4,127 people	100%

* Since the composition ratio is rounded to the first decimal place, the total is not necessarily 100.

Past Astronaut Candidate Recruitment Results

Recruitments	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
Selected Astronauts	Mamoru Mohri Chiaki Mukai Takao Doi	Koichi Wakata	Soichi Noguchi	Satoshi Furukawa Akihiko Hoshide Naoko Yamazaki	Kimiya Yui Takuya Onishi Norishige Kanai
Recruitment Period	Dec. 1, 1983 – Jan. 31, 1984	July 1, 1991 – Aug. 1, 1991	Sept. 1, 1995 – Oct. 20, 1995	Feb. 9, 1998 – April 30, 1998	April 1, 2008 – June 20, 2008
Number of Applicants	533	372	572	864	963
By Age Under 30 30-40 41 & over	196 (37%) 270 (51%) 67 (13%)	226 (61%) 144 (39%) 2 (1%)	192 (34%) 361 (63%) 19 (3%)	244 (28%) 588 (68%) 32 (4%)	183 (19%) 651 (68%) 129 (13%)