Japan May Scale Back Its Space Ambitions After Probe Misses Venus
The failure of a Venus probe to reach orbit last week will likely prompt the Japanese space program to take a more cautious tack, according to scientists attending the American Geophysical Union fall meeting this week. The Akatsuki probe - meaning "dawn" in Japanese - is shedding light on the perils of space ambition on a shoestring budget, according to Space.com. "Our score is zero wins, two losses," Takehiko Satoh, of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), told Space.com last week. "We have to be more conservative to plan our next planetary mission, so it will never fail in any aspect." Related ArticlesJapanese Venus Probe Misses the Planet, May Get Another Chance In Six YearsHayabusa Probe Has Successfully Brought Back First Asteroid Dust to EarthJapan Plans a Moon Base by 2020, Built by Robots for RobotsTagsScience, Rebecca Boyle, akatsuki, hayabusa, japanese spacecraft, jaxa, space exploration, spacecraft, VENUSAfter a nearly eight-month journey to...