is a space engineer, and spouse of Japanese astronaut Naoko Yamazaki

Naoko Yamazaki

is a former Japanese female astronaut at JAXA, the second Japanese woman to qualified. The first was Chiaki Mukai.-Early life:Yamazaki was born Naoko Sumino in Matsudo City. She spent two years of her childhood in Sapporo...

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Biography

He has had an interest in spacecraft since junior school and in middle school was moved by the experience of seeing the Space Travel Section of the Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

 in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

  Despite being shocked by the Challenger

Space Shuttle Challenger disaster

The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of central Florida at 11:38 am EST...

tragedy, he wanted to someday travel in space.

Yamazaki is married to the Japanese astronaut Naoko Yamazaki

Naoko Yamazaki

is a former Japanese female astronaut at JAXA, the second Japanese woman to qualified. The first was Chiaki Mukai.-Early life:Yamazaki was born Naoko Sumino in Matsudo City. She spent two years of her childhood in Sapporo...

; they have two children.