Koichi Wakata

Koichi Wakata was born on 1 August 1963 in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, and trained as an engineer rather than a pilot — a background that shaped his methodical, cooperation-minded approach to spaceflight. He earned a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from Kyushu University in 1987, followed by a master's in applied mechanics and later a doctorate in aerospace engineering from the same institution. Before space, he worked as an aircraft structural engineer at Japan Airlines, specializing in maintenance and structures. In 1992 he was selected by Japan's National Space Development Agency (NASDA, later part of JAXA), beginning a career that would make him Japan's most-flown astronaut and a fixture of international crews for three decades.

Wakata's five spaceflights trace the evolution of human presence in low Earth orbit. He debuted on the Space Shuttle mission STS-72 in January 1996 as the first Japanese mission specialist, a flight during which he and crewmate Daniel Barry famously played the first game of Go in orbit. On STS-92 in 2000 he became the first Japanese astronaut to help assemble the International Space Station, operating the robotic arm during structural work. His third mission, in 2009, was a long-duration stay spanning ISS Expeditions 18, 19 and 20 — Japan's first extended residency aboard the station — arriving and departing on Shuttle flights STS-119 and STS-127. In November 2013 he launched on Soyuz TMA-11M for a stay across Expeditions 38 and 39, and in March 2014 he took command of the ISS on Expedition 39, becoming the first Japanese astronaut ever to lead the orbiting laboratory. His fifth and final flight came aboard SpaceX Crew-5, launching on the Crew Dragon Endurance on 5 October 2022 for Expedition 68, a roughly 157-day mission that concluded in March 2023. Across these flights he logged more than 500 days in space and conducted two spacewalks.

Wakata's legacy rests on breadth and continuity: he flew on the Space Shuttle, Soyuz and Crew Dragon, and served under multiple generations of station operations, earning the NASA Space Flight Medal several times and high Japanese honors including the Order of the Sacred Treasure. His command of Expedition 39 opened the door for later Japanese station commanders and stands as a milestone in JAXA's maturation as an equal partner in the ISS program. A devotee of the Japanese concept of "wa," or harmony, he became known as a consensus-builder whose engineering discipline and calm demeanor suited the multinational crews he served with. He has remained active in the spaceflight field, continuing to contribute his experience to the next era of human exploration.