Society

Japan to develop passenger spaceships in 2040s linking world's major cities in 2 hours

May 17 (Mainichi) - The Japanese government and private companies are gearing up to develop intercontinental passenger spaceships that could fly between the world's major cities in two hours or faster by utilizing rocket technology, Japan's science ministry has announced.

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, which unveiled the plan on May 12, aims to achieve its goals by the early 2040s. It predicts the market for spaceships departing from and arriving in Japan could reach roughly 5 trillion yen (about $46 billion) in 2040.

The ministry compiled an interim draft of its roadmap for future spaceship transportation, split into two phases, at a meeting of an expert panel on May 12.

In the first phase, the cost of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)'s next-generation H3 rocket will be halved from the 5 billion yen (about $46 million) or more spent on the H3 Launch Vehicle, JAXA's new rocket whose first flight is set for fiscal 2021, by reusing parts of the rocket body, among other measures. The roadmap aims to launch H3's successor rocket around 2030, and to further reduce the cost to about 10% in the early 2040s.

Over 300 New Geoglyphs Discovered by Yamagata University in Nazca

Yamagata University, which has been conducting research on the Nazca geoglyphs in Peru, announced the discovery of over 300 new geoglyphs, depicting a variety of subjects, including humans and animals.

University of Tokyo Raises Tuition Fees for First Time in 20 Years

The University of Tokyo has officially decided to increase tuition by approximately 110,000 yen for incoming undergraduate students starting next academic year, bringing the total to 642,960 yen.

Death toll rises to 9 in Japan's Ishikawa following heavy rain

Emergency officials say the death toll from record rainfall in Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture has risen to nine. (NHK)

Russian military plane intrudes into Japanese airspace, Tokyo lodges protest

A Japanese government spokesperson says a Russian military airplane entered Japanese airspace three times on Monday. (NHK)

Kishida vows in meeting with Zelenskyy continued support for Ukraine

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has conveyed his country's intention to maintain support for Ukraine to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (NHK)

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