Koichi Wakata
Photo credit: Unknown
Date of Birth: 8/1/1963
Status: Active
Nationality: Japan
Agency: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Biography
Koichi Wakata (若田 光一 Wakata Kōichi, born 1 August 1963) is a Japanese engineer and a JAXA astronaut. Wakata is a veteran of four NASA Space Shuttle missions, a Russian Soyuz mission, and a long-duration stay on the International Space Station. During a nearly two-decade career in spaceflight, he has logged more than eleven months in space. During Expedition 39, he became the first Japanese commander of the International Space Station. Wakata flew on the Soyuz TMA-11M/Expedition 38/Expedition 39 long duration spaceflight from 7 November 2013 to 13 May 2014. During this spaceflight he was accompanied by Kirobo, the first humanoid robot astronaut.
Space Experience
Time in Space: 504 days, 18 hours, 31 minutes, and 45 seconds
Number of Flights: 5
Number of Landings: 5
Number of Spacewalks: 2
EVA Time: 14 hours and 2 minutes
First Flight: 1/11/1996
Last Flight: 10/5/2022