Three individuals who contributed to Kibo-ABC received the APRSAF Award at APRSAF-29!

Experiment at Kibo
Kibo Utilization Office for Asia (KUOA)

At the 29th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-29) held on September 19-22, 2023 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Kibo-ABC*¹ member, Dr. Thomas Jamaluddin of Indonesia's National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Mr. TANIGAKI Fumiaki of JAXA, and Mr. Paritat Theantong of the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NASTDA) of Thailand, jointly received the APRSAF Space Achievement Award*².

*1 Kibo-ABC (Asia-Pacific Cooperation Initiative using Kibo) is an initiative established by the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) to promote the use of the Japanese Experiment Module ‘Kibo' and to share the value gained through Kibo's use. There are 19 member institutions from 14 countries/regions.

*2 The APRSAF Space Achievement Award was proposed at the APRSAF Executive Committee ("ExCom") meeting at APRSAF-26 in Nagoya, Japan, in November 2019, to promote space-related activities in the Asia-Pacific region as well as globally by recognizing outstanding contributions, which led to the creation of the APRSAF Award in 2021.

Fig. 1: APRSAF Space Achievement Award (from left to right: BRIN/Dr. Thomas Jamaluddin; presenter; JAXA/Mr. Fumiaki Tanigaki; NASTDA/Mr. Paritat Theantong) (Image by JAXA/BRIN)

The three recipients of the award were recognized for their significant contributions to the expansion of the activities of the Space Frontier Working Group and Kibo-ABC.
During the award ceremony, they said, "We consider this award a reward not only for these three, but for the entire Kibo-ABC participating institutions. Kibo-ABC's activities provide an invaluable opportunity for the younger generation to learn about space science. We will continue to develop these activities and make every effort to advance Kibo's scientific and technological applications.

Fig. 2: APRSAF Award winners and Kibo-ABC officials (Image by JAXA)

Fig. 3:　APRSAF Space Achievement Award (Image by JAXA)

Kibo-ABC is pleased to offer the Space Seed for Asian Future, Asian Try Zero-G, and Kibo-Robot Programming Challenge educational programs for students. We will continue to work vigorously to make the Asia-Pacific region more informed about the use of Kibo.

General Comments from the APRSAF Award Committee

Dr. Djamaluddin, Mr. Tanigaki and Mr. Theangthong are recognized for their extensive contributions to the expansion of activities in the Space Frontier Working Group (SFWG) related to the utilization of the International Space Station/Kibo. Along with the SFWG, they have led the Kibo-ABC initiative consisting of space science and technology programs that have engaged and inspired a wide range of young researchers and students in the region. These programs include Space Seed for Asian Future, Asian Try Zero-G, and Kibo Robot Programming Challenge, providing opportunities for young generations to expand their passion for space science, develop expertise, and help them get international exposure to interact with peers from diverse backgrounds. The awardees also contributed to the holding of the Kibo Utilization Workshops to discover potential space experiments. As a result of activities of the Kibo-ABC and the workshops, the scientific and technical utilization of Kibo has been realized in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and UAE.

(Source: https://www.aprsaf.org/award/winner.php)

Three individuals who contributed to Kibo-ABC received the APRSAF Award at APRSAF-29!

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