Japan to focus on lunar rover after US halts moon space station

AdvertisementJapanThis Week in AsiaEconomicsJapan to focus on lunar rover after US halts moon space station

Japan’s space agency has invested at least US$78.5 million to build components for Nasa’s now-halted project

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Julian RyallPublished: 12:00pm, 20 Apr 2026Updated: 12:18pm, 20 Apr 2026A US move to freeze the Lunar Gateway orbiting space station could render Japan’s new technologies redundant – but its space agency is expected to be diplomatic in its response.The gateway project was initially planned as an installation that would orbit the moon as part of the United States’ Artemis programme, which recently made headlines for a record-breaking journey that went deeper into space than anyone had ever flown before.

Artemis’ aim is to return astronauts to the moon’s surface for the first time since 1972, with the space station a key element of the project.

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Questions were raised about the project in May last year, when the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) expressed concern over escalating costs, commercial alternatives and shifting priorities.

Nevertheless, US$2.6 billion of funding over two years was earmarked for the project last July under President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

On March 24, however, Nasa announced it was freezing the project to focus on the construction of a base on the surface of the moon, with future manned missions to Mars in mind.AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x