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Space

Japan’s Defense Ministry Issues Update on Space Laser Commu…

On June 19, the Japanese Ministry of Defense (JMOD) released an update on an ongoing demonstration project with Space Compass Corporation aimed at developing high-speed, high-capacity optical communications between satellites for enhanced space domain awareness (SDA).In a post on X,[1] JMOD explains how it is working with Space Compass, a joint venture formed by NTT Corporation and SKY Perfect JSA…

07/15/2026 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space Satellite Communications East Asia Government

Japan and NATO Hold Defence Industrial Dialogue, JMOD Streng…

In mid-May, NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defence Industry, Innovation and Armaments, Tarja Jaakkola, visited Tokyo to discuss with Japanese officials and industry representatives how NATO and Japan can strengthen defense industrial cooperation.Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) explained[1] that the two sides held a Japan-NATO Defence Industrial Cooperation and Capa…

06/05/2026 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space North America East Asia Europe

Japan–Luxembourg Space Communications Accord: Could It be a…

Earlier this month, Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications signed an agreement with Luxembourg’s Ministry of State of the Grand Duchy to cooperate on the development of space network technology and satellite optical communications.The agreement forms part of a broader Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) in the digital field signed by Japanese Minister of Internal Affairs and Communi…

05/29/2026 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space Satellite East Asia Europe Government

JMOD Announces Contracts for Satellite Inspection and Protec…

On March 6, Japan’s Ministry of Defense (JMOD) announced a series of contracts with electronics manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and two Japanese space startups, Orbital Lasers Co., Ltd. and Astroscale Japan Inc., for a technology demonstration project aimed at developing a system to monitor and help protect Japanese satellites operating in geostationary orbit from potential threats a…

03/23/2026 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space Satellite East Asia Government Business

Tokyo’s Spicy Company Expands Space Tech R&D with ‘AI-Equi…

On October 31, Spicy Company Co., Ltd., a Japanese distributor of advanced space and defense technologies, announced the launch of a research and development (R&D) project to integrate an AI-equipped miniaturized satellite system with “high-output plasma radar” technology. The integrated system aims to enable surveillance of low-Earth orbit objects and autonomous threat detection, while maintain…

11/13/2025 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite ISR AI East Asia Business

Northrop Grumman CEO Highlights Hypersonic Interceptor as Ke…

On October 28, Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden stated in an interview with the Nikkei Shimbun that an interceptor capable of neutralizing hypersonic glide vehicles (HGVs) being co-developed by Japan and the United States represents “one option” for Tokyo to be able to expand its defense exports.Warden nevertheless explained to Nikkei that the export of such defense equipment co-developed by Am…

11/10/2025 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Missile North America East Asia Business

BeMap and Spicy USA Establish Space Defense Communications R…

On August 13, Japanese IT firm BeMap Inc. announced that, in partnership with Spicy USA Ltd., a U.S.-based subsidiary of Spicy Company Inc. - the Tokyo-based distributor of advanced space and defense technologies - it plans to establish a “space defense communications research center” (宇宙防衛通信研究所) on Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. unincorporated territory and commonwealth…

09/05/2025 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space Satellite Drone North America East Asia Business

Japanese IT Firm BeMap Enters Defense and Space Sectors, Cit…

On July 22, BeMap Inc., a Tokyo-based digital IT firm that provides wireless communications and surveillance video services for a range of sectors including Japan’s railways and TV broadcasters, officially announced its entry into the space and defense business.In its press release,[1] BeMap explained that it has entered into a partnership with Spicy Company Inc., a Tokyo-based distributor of adv…

07/25/2025 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Space Missile East Asia Middle East Business

Japan’s Ministry of Defense Partners with “Space Compass”…

On March 31, the Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD) announced the finalization of a contract with Tokyo-based satellite communications developer Space Compass Corporation for a demonstration project focused on acquiring satellite-based optical communications capabilities.[1] This cutting-edge technology, which uses light to transmit data, provides 10 to 100 times more bandwidth than traditional radi…

04/23/2025 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Space

Japan’s Rocket and Satellite Technology: An Assessment Amid…

On September 26, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) announced the successful launch of the Government of Japan’s Information Gathering Satellite Radar No.8 (IGS R 8) aboard the company’s own H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 49 (H-IIA F49). This latest launch, coordinated by Japan’s Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center (CSICE), took place at 14:24 (Japan Standard Time - JST) and was carried out a…

10/10/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia

Japan’s Solafune, Inc. to Launch Satellite Data Analysis Pr…

On September 17, Solafune, Inc. (CEO: Ren Uechi; Headquarters: Shibuya, Tokyo) announced that it “has been awarded with a contract from the Ministry of Defense for a project related to satellite data analysis”. The Japanese start-up notes that details regarding the project are to “remain strictly confidential”. Solafune is currently providing to approximately 110 countries worldwide its satel…

10/02/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Business

Ministry of Defense Announces Launch Date for Japan’s Third…

On August 27, the Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD) announced that its X-band defense communication satellite-3 “Kirameki 3” has been scheduled for launch on board the H3 Launch Vehicle by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) on October 20, 2024. The “Kirameki 3” is the third of three x-band defense communication satellites to be developed and launched by JMOD which the ministry plans…

09/02/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Government

Japan’s Defense Ministry Aims to Boost Space Defense Fundin…

The Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD) intends to revamp the space domain capabilities of the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) by constructing a new 323.2 billion-yen (approx. 2.2 billion USD) ‘satellite constellation’ capable of tracking multiple suspicious targets in real time, according to local news reports citing insiders familiar with the matter. JMOD is also expected to seek a further 135.…

08/30/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia

Ministry of Defense Announces Progress toward Test Demonstra…

On August 16, the Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD) announced completion of the detailed design for a satellite being developed by Canon Electronics Inc. capable of multi-orbit observations, and the commencement of the manufacturing phase for a test demonstration model. The satellite forms part of a JMOD project that seeks to improve Space Domain Awareness (SDA) by developing an optical satellite c…

08/23/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Government

Japan Ministry of Defense Announces Successful Demonstration…

On August 3, the Japan Ministry of Defense announced that a small-scale Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) that can be leveraged for national security was successfully launched that same day by the satellite project’s operator Synspective Inc., a Japanese SAR satellite data and solutions provider headquartered in Tokyo. The ministry’s project aims to use the image capturing technology of commercial…

08/07/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Government

Successful Demonstration Test of an “Ultra-Compact Stratosp…

Meisei Electric Co., Ltd (Headquarters: Gunma Prefecture; CEO: Masanobu NATSUAKE), a member of the IHI Group, has successfully demonstrated an “Ultra-Compact Stratospheric Observation Platform” that can stay in the stratosphere for long periods of time at low cost through the use of a small-scale rubber-based meteorological balloon. The company now plans to start providing a trial service utili…

08/05/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite East Asia Business

SKY Perfect JSAT Holds Discussions with the U.S. Military ov…

Eiichi Yonekura, the president of “SKY Perfect JSAT” which engages in the space business revealed that they were holding discussions for expanding collaboration with the U.S. military. They will collaborate in space situational awareness (SSA) through satellite. The company intends to develop the security sector into a pillar of revenue. Mr. Yonekura revealed it in an interview with a Japanese …

04/11/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

Satellite North America East Asia Business

First Japanese Astronauts to Land on the Moon to Explore Wat…

A document stating that the U.S.-led international lunar exploration program "Artemis missions" is being finalized with a view to landing a Japanese astronaut on the Moon is expected to be signed soon between the U.S. and Japan. It will be important not only to land on the Moon, but also to play a role in resource development on the Moon. The Artemis missions aim for the first manned lunar landin…

02/09/2024 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

North America East Asia Government

Defense Minister Met with U.S. Space Force General to Enhanc…

On September 25th, 2023, General Saltzman, chief of space operations in the U.S. Space Force, met with Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara at the Ministry of Defense. They reached an agreement to strengthen cooperation in the defense of the space domain. General Saltzman stated, “Expanding cooperation between the U.S. and Japan in the space domain will further strengthen our bilateral relati…

10/11/2023 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

North America East Asia Government Space

U.S. Probe Capsule Returns, NASA in Hot Pursuit of Hayabusa

On September 24th, 2023 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that the asteroid probe OSIRIS-REx had recovered a capsule containing samples of sand and stones collected from the asteroid Bennu. Bennu is an asteroid between the Earth and Mars. It is believed to contain material from the time of the solar system’s formation and is expected to provide clues to the origin…

10/06/2023 NSBT Japan Editorial Department

North America East Asia Government Space Europe

Ranking

Japan Exploring Export of Used Abukuma-Class Destroyers to Philippine Navy

MadeHere Inc. Enters Public-Private Partnership with U.S. Marine Corps’ Marine Depot Maintenance Command to Strengthen Indo-Pacific Sustainment

[Now Open for Registration] NSBT Strategy Forum 2026 in Tokyo

Subaru Delivers Experimental UAV to Japan’s ATLA for Manned-Unmanned Teaming Research

ATLA’s High-Power Microwave Device: Advancing R&D for Cost-Effective Counter-Drone Systems

ATLA Seeking Mid-Sized Attack and Mine-Clearing UGVs

LDP Proposes Mass Deployment of Drones and AI-Enabled Decision-Making

JASDF Seeks Private Sector Input on Air Defense Radar Equipment

[Interview with the Australian Embassy in Japan] - Defence Attaché, Commercial Counsellor and Defence and Security Director

SOF Week Report ①: At The Frontlines of the Special Forces Community

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