Mission Archive

NASA/JAXA · 2023

Low Earth orbit

A JAXA and NASA X-ray observatory that measures the energy of X-rays with great precision, revealing the temperature, composition and motion of hot gas around black holes and in galaxy clusters.

ESA/JAXA · 2018

Mercury

A joint ESA and JAXA mission carrying two orbiters to Mercury, on a cruise of eight years with flybys of Earth, Venus and Mercury itself.

NASA/JAXA · 2016

Low Earth orbit

A JAXA X-ray observatory built with NASA. It broke apart five weeks after launch when a software error set it spinning out of control, but had already measured the motion of hot gas in the Perseus galaxy cluster.

JAXA/DLR/CNES · 2014

Ryugu

A JAXA mission that collected samples from the asteroid Ryugu and returned them to Earth in December 2020. The spacecraft is now on an extended mission to other asteroids.

JAXA · 2010

Venus

A JAXA orbiter that studied Venus's weather and fast-moving atmosphere. It missed its first attempt to enter orbit in 2010 and succeeded five years later.

JAXA · 2007

Moon

A JAXA lunar orbiter that mapped the Moon's surface, gravity and magnetic field in detail, working with two small sub-satellites.

JAXA · 2003

Itokawa

The first mission to return samples from an asteroid, bringing back grains from Itokawa in 2010 after a seven-year journey troubled by failed reaction wheels, fuel leaks and a lost signal.