Professor Masahiro Hoshino (Department of Earth and Planetary Science), the first director of the UTokyo Organization for Planetary Space Science (UTOPS), gave his final lecture, “From Earth to Space, the World of Plasma,” on Monday, February 19, 2024, and the lecture was archived on YouTube.

Please watch it from the following link.

The EQUULEUS, an ultra-small spacecraft, has been selected for the Selection Committee’s Special Prize at the 6th Space Exploitation Prize organized by the Japanese Cabinet Office under the title of “Demonstration of Orbit Control Technology in the Earth-Moon Sphere Using an Ultra-small Spacecraft”.

Professor Ryu Funase of UTOPS is involved in the development of the EQUULEUS spacecraft.

Please refer to the following URL for details.

https://www8.cao.go.jp/space/prize/prize.html

On February 23, 2024, Professor Shogo Tachibana gave a lecture titled “Bringing Back Samples from Small Objects – Ryugu, Bennu, and Beyond” at Hibiki Hall, Taketoyo Community Arts Center Yumetaro Plaza.

Please refer to the following URL for details.

On February 20, 2024 (Tue.), a book by Professor Shogo Tachibana of the UTOPS, titled “What did Hayabusa2 bring back?” was published.

Please refer to the following URL for details.

https://www.iwanami.co.jp/book/b639909.html

UTokyo Organization for Planetary Space Science (UTOPS) cooperated with the “Special Exhibition of Asteroid Itokawa and Ryugu Samples in Akashi” held from January 27 (Sat) to February 18 (Sun), 2024, at the 3rd floor exhibition room “Astronomy Gallery” of Akashi Municipal Planetarium.

Samples from the asteroid Itokawa, brought back to Earth by the asteroid explorer Hayabusa in June 2010, and samples from the asteroid Ryugu, brought back to Earth by the asteroid explorer Hayabusa2 in December 2020, were displayed side by side.

In conjunction with the exhibition, Professor Shogo Tachibana gave a lecture entitled “What the Stones of Asteroid Ryugu Have Begun to Tell Us” on January 28, 2024, at the planetarium dome on the second floor of the museum.

For details, please refer to the following URL.

We co-organized the Solar System symposium in Sapporo 2024 from February 13 (Tue.) to 15 (Thu.), 2024, at the Rusutsu Resort in Hokkaido, Japan.

About 40 participants from Japan and overseas discussed the formation and early evolution of the solar system.

On the second day, February 14 (Wednesday), we invited Professor Harold C. Connolly Jr., OSIRIS-REx Mission Sample Scientist, to give a lecture on the return samples from the asteroid Bennu.

Please refer to the following URL for details.

https://3s2024.webnode.jp