2025 NO.38
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A Virtual Journey through Japan
Space Experiences Across Japan
Stargaze under the stunning night sky; get a taste of the weightlessness that real astronauts experience. Spots around Japan let you feel the vast expansiveness of the cosmos up close and personal.
①Hokkaido
Asahikawa Science Museum SCI-PAL
The various hands-on equipment displays at SCI-PAL include the Uchu-goma (pictured), which allows visitors to experience weightlessness, and the Moon Jump, which simulates the gravity of the moon’s surface. Visit the museum to immerse yourself in what it feels like to be an astronaut. (Photo: Asahikawa Science Museum SCI-PAL)
②Ibaraki
JAXA Tsukuba Space Center
Established in 1972, this is the nerve center of JAXA, Japan’s space program. The vast site, measuring approximately 530,000 m2, is home to a concentrated group of facilities that develop and operate rockets and satellites. Visitors can view a prototype of the H-II, a rocket developed and built in Japan (pictured), as well as a full-scale model of Japan’s first lunar exploration satellite, Kaguya (SELENE, Selenological and Engineering Explorer). (©JAXA)
③Tokyo
Tokyo Skytree Town® Campus, Chiba
Institute of Technology
On the 8th floor of the Solamachi complex at the base of the 634m-tall Tokyo Skytree is an advanced robotics and space learning center. This interactive facility is open for the public to enjoy learning about cutting-edge technology and research findings. Pictured is the full-scale model of the Hayabusa2 on display. (Photo: Tokyo Skytree Town® Campus, Chiba Institute of Technology)
④Tokyo
Mitaka Campus, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
Established in 1888 and relocated to Mitaka in 1924, this observatory institute lies at the heart of Japanese astronomical research. Visitors can tour the historical observation facilities dotted around the campus. One of the highlights is the refracting telescope with 65cm aperture installed at the Observatory History Museum. It remains the largest refracting telescope in Japan today. (Photo: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan)
⑤Gifu
Hida Space Science Museum Kamiokalab
Neutrinos are tiny subatomic particles, much smaller than atoms, that travel through space. The large wall-sized model of the Super-Kamiokande is faithfully reproduced here with the same materials as the actual sensor. It is a spectacular sight to behold. (Photo: Hida Space Science Museum Kamiokalab)
⑥Ishikawa
Space Science Museum Cosmo Isle Hakui
Step inside the distinctive flying saucer-like museum to see an array of spacecraft and probes that have returned home from their time in outer space. Among them, you will not want to miss the LE-5, Japan’s first engine used in a rocket launch. (Photos: Space Science Museum Cosmo Isle Hakui)
⑦Tottori
Daisen
Known as “the stargazing prefecture,” all of Tottori Prefecture boasts beautiful views of star-filled skies. The 1,729-meter Daisen mountain in the western part of the prefecture offers particularly outstanding stargazing. Commemorate the experience with a photo in front of a starry sky that changes hour-by-hour, season-by-season, or even the Milky Way so clear it is visible to the naked eye. (Photo: “Starry Sky Photo Tour” sponsored by Daisen Tourism Bureau)
⑧Fukuoka
Fukuoka City Science Museum
Bringing optical and digital technologies together, the museum’s planetarium projector, the most advanced in the world, projects a stunning starry sky onto a large dome screen 25 meters in diameter. The museum was selected as the venue for the conference of the International Planetarium Society 2026, gaining worldwide attention. (Photos: Fukuoka City Science Museum)