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Wakata, Koichi

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Wakata Credit: www.spacefacts.de

Status: Active 1992-on. Born: 1963-08-01. Spaceflights: 4 . Total time in space: 347.36 days. Birth Place: Omiya, Saitama.

Educated Kyushu.

NAME: Koichi Wakata

NASDA Astronaut

PERSONAL DATA:

Born August 1, 1963, in Omiya, Saitama, Japan. Married to the former Stefanie von Sachsen-Altenburg of Bonn, Germany. He enjoys hang-gliding, baseball, tennis, and snow skiing. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Nobutaka Wakata, are residents of Omiya, Saitama, Japan.

EDUCATION:

Graduated from Urawa High School, Saitama, in 1982; received a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering from Kyushu University in 1987; and a master of science degree in applied mechanics from Kyushu University in 1989.

ORGANIZATIONS:

Member of the Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space Sciences, the Robotics Society of Japan, and the Japanese Society for Biological Sciences in Space.

SPECIAL HONORS:

Minister of State for Science and Technology Commendation. Special awards from Saitama Prefecture and Omiya City. National Space Development Agency of Japan Outstanding Service Award (1996).

EXPERIENCE:

Wakata joined Japan Airlines (JAL) in April 1989. He was assigned to the Base Maintenance Department, Narita, Chiba, where he was designated as a structural engineer. From July 1991 to May 1992, Wakata was assigned to the Airframe Group, Systems Engineering Office, Engineering Department of JAL. During his tenure with JAL, Wakata was involved in the research of structural integrity of transport aircraft, fatigue fracture, corrosion prevention program, and the environmental effects on fuselage polished aluminum skin on B-747, B-767 and DC-10 aircraft. He was selected by the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) in June 1992.

NASA EXPERIENCE:

Wakata reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1992. He completed one year of training and is qualified for assignment as a mission specialist on future Space Shuttle flight crews. Wakata's technical assignments to date include: payload science support for the Astronaut Office Mission Development Branch (April 1993 to February 1995); Space Shuttle flight software verification testing in the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL) (April to October 1994); Space Station and Space Station Robotics for the Astronaut Office EVA/Robotics Branch (March 1996 to date).

Most recently, Wakata was a mission specialist on STS-72 (January 11-20, 1996), aboard Endeavour. During the 9-day flight the crew retrieved the Space Flyer Unit (launched from Japan 10-months earlier), deployed and retrieved the OAST-Flyer, and conducted two spacewalks to demonstrate and evaluate techniques to be used in the assembly of the International Space Station. In completing his first space flight, Wakata has logged a total of 214 hours and 41 seconds in space.

• Birth of Koichi Wakata - . Nation: Japan. Related Persons: Wakata. Japanese engineer mission specialist astronaut 1992-on. 4 spaceflights, 347.4 days in space. Flew to orbit on STS-72 (1996), STS-92, STS-119, Soyuz TMA-11M..

• STS-72 - . Call Sign: Endeavour. Crew: Barry, Chiao, Duffy, Jett, Scott, Winston, Wakata. Payload: Endeavour F10 / OAST / FSU. Mass: 6,510 kg (14,350 lb). Nation: USA. Related Persons: Barry, Chiao, Duffy, Jett, Scott, Winston, Wakata. Agency: NASA Houston. Program: STS. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spaceplane. Flight: STS-72. Spacecraft Bus: Shuttle. Spacecraft: Endeavour. Duration: 8.92 days. Decay Date: 1996-01-20 . USAF Sat Cat: 23762 . COSPAR: 1996-001A. Apogee: 310 km (190 mi). Perigee: 302 km (187 mi). Inclination: 28.50 deg. Period: 90.60 min. Deployed and retrieved OAST Flyer; retrieved SFU Space Flyer Unit. Beside the two satellite retrievals, the mission included two spacewalks..

• Landing of STS-72 - . Return Crew: Barry, Chiao, Duffy, Jett, Scott, Winston, Wakata. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Barry, Chiao, Duffy, Jett, Scott, Winston, Wakata. Program: STS. Flight: STS-72. STS-72 landed at 07:42 GMT. .

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #01 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Discovery's seven astronauts blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center on the 100th mission in Space Shuttle history tonight to deliver the first external framework structure and a new docking port to the International Space Station.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 - . Call Sign: Discovery. Crew: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Payload: Discovery F28. Mass: 115,127 kg (253,811 lb). Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Agency: NASA Houston. Manufacturer: Boeing. Program: ISS. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spaceplane. Flight: STS-92. Spacecraft Bus: Shuttle. Spacecraft: Discovery. Duration: 12.90 days. Decay Date: 2000-10-24 . USAF Sat Cat: 26563 . COSPAR: 2000-062A. Apogee: 394 km (245 mi). Perigee: 386 km (240 mi). Inclination: 51.57 deg. Period: 92.28 min.

  ISS Logistics flight. 100th shuttle flight. Launch delayed from October 6. STS-92 brought the Z-1 Truss (mounted on a Spacelab pallet), Control Moment Gyros, Pressurised Mating Adapter-3 (PMA-3) and two DDCU (Heat pipes) to the International Space Station.

  The RSRM-76 solid rocket boosters separated at 23:19 GMT and main engine cut-off (MECO) came at 23:25 GMT. External tank ET-104 separated into a 74 x 323 km x 51.6 deg orbit. At apogee at 00:01 GMT on Oct 12, Discovery's OMS engines fired to raise perigee to a 158 x 322 km x 51.6 deg orbit; ET-104 re-entered over the Pacific around 00:30 GMT. At Oct 12 on 03:01 GMT the NC1 burn raised the orbit to 180 x 349 km; NC3 on Oct 12 to 311 x 375 km; and the TI burn at 14:09 GMT on Oct 13 to 375 x 381 km x 51.6 deg. Discovery's rendezvous with the International Space Station came at 15:39 GMT on Oct 13, with docking at 17:45 GMT. The spaceship docked with PMA-2, the docking port on the +Y port of the Space Station's Unity module. Hatch was open to PMA-2 at 20:30 GMT the same day.

  STS-92 Cargo Manifest

  • Bay 1-2: Orbiter Docking System + 3 EMU spacesuits
  • Bay 5 Port: Adapter Beam with DDCU-HP control unit
  • Bay 5 Starboard: Adapter Beam with DDCU-HP control unit
  • Bay 7-8: Spacelab Pallet MD003 with PMA-3
  • Bay 10-12: ISS Z1 first segment of the space station truss
  • Bay 13 Adapter Beam with IMAX Cargo Bay Camera
  • Sill: Canadarm RMS 301

  Total payload bay cargo: ca. 14,800 kg

  The Z1 first segment of the space station truss was built by Boeing/Canoga Park and was 3.5 x 4.5 meters in size. It was attached to the +Z port on Unity. Z1 carried the control moment gyros, the S-band antenna, and the Ku-band antenna.

  PMA-3, built by Boeing/Huntington Beach, was docked to the -Z port opposite Z1. PMA-3 was installed on a Spacelab pallet for launch.

  On October 14 at 16:15 GMT the Z1 segment was unberthed from the payload bay and at around 18:20 GMT it was docked to the zenith port on the Unity module.

  On October 15 at 14:20 GMT the ODS airlock was depressurised, beginning a spacewalk by Bill McArthur and Leroy Chiao. Official NASA EVA duration (battery power to repress) was 6 hours 28 minutes.

  The second spacewalk was on October 16, with Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria. The suits went to battery power at 14:15 GMT and Wisoff left the airlock at 14:21 GMT. Repressurisation began at 21:22 GMT for a duration of 7 hours 07minutes.

  Leroy Chiao and Bill McArthur began the third STS-92 EVA at 15:30 GMT on October 17, completing their work at 22:18 GMT for a total time of 6 hours 48 minutes.

  After the spacewalk, Discovery completed the second of the three station reboosts scheduled for STS-92. They fired reaction control system jets in a series of pulses of 1.4 seconds each, over a 30-minute period, gently raising the station's orbit by about 3.1 km.

  The last of four successful spacewalks began on 18 October at 16:00 GMT and ended at 22:56 GMT, lasting 6 hours and 56 minutes. Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria each jetted slowly through space above Discovery's cargo bay.

  After the space walk, Discovery completed the third and final reboost of the space station.

  On 19 October the astronauts worked within the ISS. They completed connections for the newly installed Z1 external framework structure and transferred equipment and supplies for the Expedition One first resident crew of the Station. The crew also tested the four 290-kg gyroscopes in the truss, called Control Moment Gyros, which will be used to orient the ISS as it orbits the Earth. They will ultimately assume attitude control of the ISS following the arrival of the U.S. Laboratory Destiny. The tests and the transfer of supplies into the Russian Zarya Module took longer than expected. As a result, the crew's final departure from the Station's Unity module was delayed. Melroy and Wisoff took samples from surfaces in Zarya to study the module's environment. They then unclogged the solid waste disposal system in the Shuttle's toilet, which was restored to full operation after a brief interruption in service.

  Discovery undocked from the ISS at 16:08 GMT on 20 October. The final separation burn was executed about 45 minutes after undocking. The crew had added 9 tonnes to the station's mass, bringing it to about 72 tonnes. The return to earth, planned for 22 October, was delayed repeatedly due to high winds at the Kennedy landing site. The landing was finally made at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on October 24, at 22:00 GMT.

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #03 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  The seven crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery spent their first full day in orbit today checking equipment in preparation for the major events to come: docking with the International Space Station on Friday and, in following days, attaching an exterior framework and additional Shuttle docking port to the orbiting outpost. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #02 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Space Shuttle Discovery continues its approach to the International Space Station, trailing the orbital outpost by approximately 5500 nautical miles as of this morning, closing by about 600 nautical miles each orbit.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #05 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Commander Brian Duffy gently maneuvered the Space Shuttle Discovery to a flawless docking with the 70-ton International Space Station this afternoon as the two craft flew 240 miles above Russia.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #04 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Discovery's astronauts were awakened this morning in preparation for their rendezvous and docking to the International Space Station after an extra hour of sleep to the sounds of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun", by Cyndi Lauper.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #07 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  The crew of Discovery added nine tons of critical equipment to the International Space Station today, attaching a framework that holds motion control gyroscopes and communications equipment and that will serve as a support for a giant set of solar arrays to be launched on the next Space Shuttle flight. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #06 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Discovery's crew is set to install the first of two major components that it carried to the Space Station today - a unique piece of hardware called the Z1 truss. The truss is an exterior framework that houses gyroscopes and communications equipment and later will serve as a mounting platform for large solar arrays that will provide power to the International Space Station. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #08 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Two of Discovery's astronauts will continue outfitting the most recent addition to the International Space Station during a scheduled 6 ½-hour space walk today.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #09 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  A key structural element for the International Space Station is now electrically connected to the rest of the station and important communications equipment set up after today's successful space walk by astronauts Leroy Chiao and Bill McArthur. "The crew ... worked absolutely perfectly together, " said lead flight director Chuck Shaw in an evening press conference afterward. "It's a major achievement for this complicated an EVA to go this well." Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #11 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Discovery astronauts Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria successfully completed the second of STS-92's four scheduled spacewalks on Monday, attaching an additional docking port to the growing International Space Station. The two spacewalkers also prepared the Z1 truss for the installation of the huge solar arrays to be launched aboard the next shuttle flight. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #10 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Lopez-Alegria, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. With the first of four consecutive space walks behind them, Discovery's crew turns its attention to today's scheduled on-orbit construction activities by Mission Specialists Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #13 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Barry, Chiao, Duffy, Jernigan, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Mission Specialists Leroy Chiao and Bill McArthur completed the third successful spacewalk of Discovery's STS-92 mission at 4:18 p.m. CDT Tuesday, installing two DC-to-DC converter units atop the International Space Station's new Z1 Truss. Those two 129-pound converters, called DDCUs, will convert electricity generated by the huge solar arrays to be attached during the next shuttle mission to the proper voltage. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #12 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Barry, Chiao, Jernigan, McArthur, Wakata. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Mission Specialists Leroy Chiao and Bill McArthur will team up once again today to conduct the third scheduled space walk of this mission, setting the stage for future on-orbit construction and the arrival of the Expedition 1 crew in November.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #14 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Mission Specialists Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria will team up once again today to conduct the final of four consecutive space walks designed to set the stage for the arrival of the first resident crew next month and the future expansion of the International Space Station. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #15 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Duffy, Jett, Lopez-Alegria, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Mission Specialists Jeff Wisoff and Mike Lopez-Alegria each jetted slowly through space above Discovery's cargo bay today, demonstrating a small rescue backpack that could help a drifting astronaut regain the safety of the spacecraft.. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #16 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Following four consecutive days of on-orbit construction outside the International Space Station, Discovery's astronauts today will work inside the Unity and Zarya modules, completing some final connections for the new Z1 Truss and transferring equipment for use by the first resident crew, slated to arrive early next month. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #24 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Ross, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Discovery's astronauts prepared for a Monday landing after high crosswinds at Kennedy Space Center caused a delay of at least one day in their return to Earth and the end of their successful mission to expand the International Space Station and ready it for its first crew. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #28 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Ross, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92.

  Discovery glided to a textbook landing under sunny skies at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Tuesday, completing a successful mission to the International Space Station. The crew spent more than two extra days in space because of unfavorable weather at Kennedy Space Center in Florida and at Edwards. Additional Details: here....

• STS-92 Mission Status Report #27 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Ross, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. Awakened to the sounds of "Déjà vu" by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Commander Brian Duffy advised Mission Control that he and his crew knew what they'd be doing today and hoped to see everyone on the ground soon.. Additional Details: here....

• Landing of STS-92 - . Return Crew: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Chiao, Duffy, Lopez-Alegria, McArthur, Melroy, Wakata, Wisoff. Program: ISS. Flight: STS-92. STS-92 landed at 21:00 GMT. .

• Soyuz TMA-09M - . Call Sign: Olympus. Crew: Nyberg, Parmitano, Yurchikhin. Backup Crew: Mastracchio, Tyurin, Wakata. Payload: Soyuz TMA s/n 709. Mass: 7,200 kg (15,800 lb). Nation: Russia. Program: ISS. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spacecraft. Flight: Soyuz TMA-09M. Spacecraft Bus: Soyuz. Spacecraft: Soyuz TMA. Duration: 166.26 days. Decay Date: 2013-11-11 . USAF Sat Cat: 39170 . COSPAR: 2013-025A. Apogee: 421 km (261 mi). Perigee: 409 km (254 mi). Inclination: 51.65 deg. Period: 92.88 min.

  Docked with the Rassvet module of the ISS at 02:10 GMT on 29 May after a 5 hour 39 minute flight. On 1 November 2013 Yurchikin, Nyberg and Parmitano, undocked from the Rassvet module at 08:33 GMT and flew around the station at a distance of 200 m to redock at 08:54 GMT with the Zvezda aft port freed up by ATV-4. Undocked from the Zvezda module on 10 November at 23:26 GMT and landed in Kazakhstan at 02:49 GMT on 11 November.

• Soyuz TMA-11M - . Call Sign: Vostok. Crew: Mastracchio, Tyurin, Wakata. Backup Crew: Gerst, Surayev, Wiseman. Payload: Soyuz TMA s/n 711. Mass: 7,200 kg (15,800 lb). Nation: Russia. Program: ISS. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spacecraft. Flight: Soyuz TMA-11M. Spacecraft Bus: Soyuz. Spacecraft: Soyuz TMA. Duration: 187.91 days. Decay Date: 2014-05-14 . USAF Sat Cat: 39373 . COSPAR: 2013-061A. Apogee: 418 km (259 mi). Perigee: 415 km (257 mi). Inclination: 51.65 deg. Period: 92.90 min. Docked with the Rassvet module of the ISS at 10:27 GMT the day of launch. Undocked from the Rassvet module at 22:36 GMT on May 13 and made the deorbit burn at 01:05 GMT May 14. Landing in Kazakhstan came at 01:58:30 GMT on May 14..