Japan’s space agency often flies under the radar, despite pursuing missions many larger agencies haven’t attempted. Like returning samples from Phobos or deploying a Toyota-built lunar rover. In this interview, we trace JAXA’s origins and the decisions that defined it.

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_u9ZJBLCDBQ

🟣 Guest: Dr. Subodhana Wijeyeratne https://subowijeyeratne.com/

📚 The Islands and the Stars: A History of Japan's Space Programs https://bdo.wfu.mybluehost.me/the-islands-the-stars/

• 00:00 Intro

• 02:01 Researching JAXA

• 06:48 Star of Japan's space journey

• 16:05 Japan's first liquid fuel rocket

• 24:14 Japan's relationships with NASA and others

• 31:23 Lesser known projects

• 36:53 Dependency on the US

• 42:00 Excitement for the Future

• 44:41 Current obsessions

• 50:17 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 12:43

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/aALqt_Ng0dU

• 00:00 Start

• 00:26 [@ar-visions] Are white dwarf a solution for Dyson spheres?

• 02:41 [@gumby2ms] How will Vera Rubin's data releases work?

• 06:48 [@karandeepgill5589] How much of a galaxy does the SMBH take up?

• 09:47 [@hangmann747tinmann8] Where do magnetars come from?

• 12:43 [@logicbug] What if the laws of physics are not uniform across the Universe?

BONUS STORY starts at 19:42

👉 Interview about Europa with Dr. Paul Byrne https://youtu.be/Sj3JwQde-b8
👉 Interview about Magnetars with Dr. Genevieve Schroeder https://youtu.be/Q3JGdARjzTA
👉 How AI Destroyed My Job: https://youtu.be/HjDD8xwU6s8

🔵 Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com/@frasercain/posts

Another reason why Europa might not be habitable, Artemis II is delayed for a month, Claude takes Perseverance for a drive, SpaceX is planning to launch data center satellites, and in Space Bites+, making discoveries in leftover data.

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:15 New Measurements for Europa https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-juno-measures-thickness-of-europas-ice-shell

• 03:16 Ammonia on Europa https://www.universetoday.com/articles/cracks-on-europa-sport-traces-of-ammonia

• 04:40 No Artemis Launch in February https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-artemis-ii-spacecraft-on-the-launch-pad

• 06:34 Claude AI Took Over Percy https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-perseverance-rover-completes-first-ai-planned-drive-on-mars/

• 08:26 Many More Satellites for SpaceX https://www.universetoday.com/articles/elon-musk-lays-out-a-new-vision-of-ai-satellites-as-spacex-acquires-xai

• 12:06 New Shepard Paused For No Less Than 2 Years https://www.blueorigin.com/news/new-shepard-to-pause-flights

• 13:18 Vital Molecule in Interstellar Space https://www.universetoday.com/articles/for-the-first-time-scientists-detect-molecule-critical-to-life-in-interstellar-space

• 15:09 Vote results https://www.youtube.com/@frasercain/posts

• 15:42 Lava Tunnels for Venus https://www.universetoday.com/articles/venus-might-harbor-massive-subsurface-lava-tunnels

• 17:23 Kilonova simulation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mt6vcy-hssA

• 18:36 Even Further Galaxies https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/nasa-webb-pushes-boundaries-of-observable-universe-closer-to-big-bang/

• 19:42 BONUS STORY

• 21:02 Missions that didn't happen