Report on the Kibo-ABC Workshop at the 30th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF)

Experiment at Kibo
Kibo Utilization Office for Asia (KUOA)

The Kibo-ABC (Asian Beneficial Collaboration through ‘Kibo’ Utilization) Workshop was held in Perth, Australia, on 25 November 2024, chaired by Dr. Tony Robinson, Head of International Partnerships, Australian Space Agency (ASA), and Dr. SHIRAKAWA Masaki, Director, Space Environment Utilization Centre, JAXA. A total of 52 participants from 18 organizations in 13 countries/region, including online participants, took part in the workshop.

Kibo-ABC is an initiative established in 2012 by Space Environment Utilization Working Group (SEUWG), former Space Frontier Working Group (SFWG) of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Forum (APRSAF), SFWG aims to promote the use of Kibo in the Asia-Pacific region and to highlight the value of using Kibo.

The Kibo-ABC Workshop is held annually in conjunction with the APRSAF, and this year's workshop was also a hybrid of online and local Perth venue. The workshop brought together members of Kibo-ABC member countries and region for monthly web meetings, and reports were given on the various Kibo-ABC programs: Kibo-RPC (Kibo Robot Programming Challenge), Asian Try Zero-G (ATZ-G), and Space Seeds for Asian Future (SSAF). JAXA Astronaut FURUKAWA Satoshi, who oversaw the 4th Kibo-RPC and conducted Asian Try Zero-G 2023 experiments on orbit, also participated as a special guest this time and gave a lecture with on-orbit images.

Figure 1: Group photo of Kibo-ABC workshop attendees

Mission report by JAXA Astronaut FURUKAWA Satoshi

JAXA astronaut FURUKAWA Satoshi worked on the International Space Station (ISS) for about six months from August 26, 2023, to March 12, 2024. During this six-month period, Astronaut Furukawa overview Kibo-ABC activities, including the 4th Kibo-RPC on-orbit finals and the Asian Try Zero-G 2023 on-orbit simple physics space experiments/exercises. During the mission report, participants were able to watch a video of on-orbit activities executed by Astronaut FURUKAWA and listened to him share his personal experience. It was a unique opportunity for the Kibo-ABC members to hear firsthand from someone who had the opportunity to go in space.

Figure 2: JAXA astronaut FURUKAWA Satoshi giving his mission report

Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC)

The Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (Kibo-RPC) is an educational program that allows participants to program the Int-Ball2 (JAXA) and the Astrobee (NASA) - the two ISS free-flying robots developed to support astronauts - to solve various problems with speed and accuracy. Of the total of the 13 countries/region that participated in the 5th Kibo-RPC, 12 of them shared the events held locally and reported the media coverage in their countries/region. Last year, some participating countries/region further promoted human resource development through the creation of explanatory videos, hosting online events and study groups, and sharing unique approaches, such as awarding incentives to top performing teamas. JAXA also reported that this year was the first mission in which Astrobee and Int-Ball2 worked together. On the other hand, some participants noted that the programming tasks assigned were too challenging for beginners, leading to a discussion on how to better support them, and the possibility of categorizing the participants based on skill level. Finally, it was announced that the 6th competition of Kibo-RPC is scheduled to take place next year.

Asian Try Zero-G

Asian Try Zero-G is a program to promote the use of the space environment in the Asia-Pacific region by inviting young people from various countries/region to submit ideas for simple on-orbit physics experiments. These experiments are then conducted by JAXA astronauts aboard the ISS Kibo module during their extended stay on the station. During the workshop, the 8 countries/region that participated in Asian Try Zero-G 2023 reported on their space experiments, the Wrap-Up session, and media coverage. Additionally, insights were shared how participants whose experiments were conducted in orbit have presented their results at academic conferences and events. Updates on the next Asian Try Zero-G 2025 were also provided. The session also included a discussion on scoring criteria for selected themes and ideas for the continued use of space in the future.

Space Seeds for Asian Future（SSAF)

Space Seeds for Asian Future (SSAF) is a program of Kibo-ABC to provide young researchers and youth in the Asia-Pacific region with opportunities to learn about space experiments and space environment utilization research. This program offers a wide range of opportunities to learn about astrobiology through experiments using plants. At this year's APRSAF, reports were given from the Philippines and Japan on one of the Asian seed programs, Asian Herbs in Space (AHiS). The Philippines announced that it held an event (Space Cartoon Contest Comic Strips)*¹ and a seed delivery ceremony related to this program. Japan presented a basil recipe contest and a progress report on research presentations about growing basil in space. During this session, several new projects currently underway from Australia, Japan, and Thailand were also discussed. Details will be announced as soon as they are finalized!

*1 In an event for students organized by the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), students used their creativity and scientific skills to create a cartoon depicting a coriander seeds journey from Earth to space and back to Earth, and competed for first place. A reproduction of the comic was donated and is on display in the viewing room at the Tsukuba Space Center.

Figure 3: Kibo-ABC Workshop

Figure 4: Kibo-ABC Workshop Chair Dr. SHIRAKAWA Masaki of JAXA and Dr. Tony Robinson of ASA

Throughout the workshop, there was a lively exchange of ideas about current programs and new projects to be launched in the future. In particular, the participants talked about the challenges faced by each country and region regarding the programs currently underway and discussed ways to improve the programs. The workshop was concluded with the agreement that these discussions will continue in the participating countries/region.

Kibo-ABC Workshop Summary ReportPDF

Kibo-ABC Workshop Information

Date and Time	November 25, 2024 10:00~16:30 (Australian Western Standard Time, UTC+8)
Agenda	Kibo-ABC Workshop Agenda
Number of participating countries/region	13 countries/region, 18 institutions
Number of participants	52 (including online participants)

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