China’s space breakthroughs put a rocket under Japan

Name: How China’s space programme went from launching satellites to building its own space station
Uploaded: 2021-09-20T06:30:18.000Z
Duration: 5 min 6 s
Description: How China’s space programme went from launching satellites to building its own space station

With ‘techno-nationalism’ fuelling a new space race, Japan has passed a new law allowing its companies to collect resources from the moon, asteroids or other celestial bodies

Tokyo is driven not only by a desire to compete with China, but by an increasing realisation of the commercial potential of space, experts say

Reading Time:4 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

A rocket launch by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Photo: AP

Julian Ryall

Published: 2:30pm, 20 Sep 2021Updated: 9:00pm, 20 Sep 2021

A new Japanese law permits private companies to claim ownership of resources from outer space, the latest development in an international space race fuelled as much by national pride as the growing need to harvest resources from beyond Earth’s atmosphere.

The new legislation coincides with increased interest and investment in space ventures by both private companies and the government-funded Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), which in July completed the first test in space of a next-generation rocket engine with sufficient thrust to theoretically enable spacecraft to reach speeds of Mach 6, more than 3,800mph (6,110km/h).

With broad cross-party support, the Diet in June passed the law, allowing Japanese companies to collect resources from the moon, asteroids or other celestial bodies. Japan is the fourth country to pass such legislation, after the United States in 2015 and then Luxembourg and the United Arab Emirates.

The Japanese government is eager to encourage investment in space technology and exploration as the sector becomes a new frontier for international competition. For Japan, which works closely with Nasa of the US, China is the most significant competitor.

“A number of Japanese companies are already making plans to extract resources from outer space, such as Ispace, which is trying to confirm the presence of water as ice at the south pole of the moon,” said Kazuto Suzuki, a professor of science and technology policy at Tokyo University.

05:06

How China’s space programme went from launching satellites to building its own space station

“The new law now regulates the activities of these companies, with the government keen to confirm companies’ legal ownership of the resources they are able to recover.”