TokyoTomo Travel Guide

This week, we will introduce three main tour in The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)　Tsukuba Space Center.

General Guided Tour

1. After watching a video in the audio-visual room, participants follow the guide and view the acilities.

2. In the Exhibition room, you will see 1/20 scale model of rockets such as N-1 Rocket and the state-of-the-art H-II B Rocket, and even a full-scale satellite. It also shows the internal part of the Japanese experiment module KIBO by its model.

3. The guide will lead you to take a look at the engineering model of Japanese experiment module KIBO. Being almost equivalent as the real module, engineering model is used for function tests before they develop the flight model.

4. The tour will then come across Weightless Environment Test Building. Using the buoyant force of the water, the swimming pool with 10 meter in depth is the facility where astronauts is trained for their extravehicular activities in a weightless environment.

5. Next up is the Astronaut Training Facility where astronauts go through their basic training. Or, for tours held on Saturdays and Sundays, you will get to listen to the rocket launching sound you would hear if you are 3 km away from the launch pad.

Free admission. Duration is about 75 minutes. 5 session is held per day, but reservation is required in advance.

KIBO Control Room Tour
You can even get to see the real-life operation and control of KIBO. Tsukuba Space Center is in charge of monitoring the condition of the devices and experimental equipments loaded in KIBO and transmitting control commands to the module. Other than that, Tsukuba Space Center communicates with astronauts and other worldwide control centers involved in the ISS project, and handles anomaly if any.

In the room, the flight director takes the overall control with more than 50 operators working in three shifts in 24 hours. Please note that participants will need their ID as this room is a high security area. Free admission. Duration is about 75 minutes. The session is held only once a day from 3pm. Reservation required in advance.

Mock Astronaut Training Course (fee-based experience) Until 31 March 2010

Using the facilities within Tsukuba Space Center, you can actually experience five kinds of mock astronaut training.

1. Adaptive training of closed environment/Number of trainee: 4-8 persons
This is a mock training of joint operation, astronaut evaluation exam, and operation using white puzzle, conducted inside a chamber simulating the closed environment of ISS. It is quite a hard task to give direction to your peers in the closed environment, using monitor, camera and a microphone.

2. Mock training of extravehicular activity/Number of trainee: 4-8 persons
This is a mock training of extravehicular activity (EVA) using the real size mock-up of extravehicular platform. Participants are divided into two groups, one in control room and another outside, to work together as a team.

3. Mock training of emergency situation/Number of trainee: 3-8 persons
Using the facility the astronauts actually used, you will experience a mock training to handle emergency situation with your peers.

4. Mock experience of controlling a space rover/Number of trainee: 2-8 persons
Mock experience to drive an unmanned rover using a special control pad.