Message from the President March.2018

The United States and Japan have succeeded in launching one extremely compact rocket after another since the beginning of 2018. I have the feeling that the day is fast approaching when the space industry reaches the rank of a full-blown business.

For most of us, I am sure that the universe has carried the strong impression of a remote place. I suspect that the universe has been a place that is impossible to reach even if we give it chase, a place that is impossible to go to and a place that is impossible to monitor. However, the evolution of technologies has made it possible for mankind to descend on the mysterious moon, discover new stars using advanced astronomical telescopes, and watch live images of the earth taken from space stations.

I have strong expectations that three changes can result from the continued advancement of technological development in space.

The first change is greater convenience for those of us living on the earth with the aid of the cosmic environment. To cite examples, satellite positioning systems enabled a number of services based on positional information, such as car navigation and smartphone services, which brought greater convenience to our lives. We became able to watch athletic and other events staged on the other side of the earth on a real-time basis thanks to communications satellites. I believe automated driving will become reality and the use of support systems for remote areas using drones will accelerate with further enhancements in positioning accuracy.

The second change is the application of findings through studies and experiments in space to the development of new technologies. Studies in diverse fields making the most of the special condition known as weightlessness, which is unimaginable on the earth, are expected to lead to scientific and technological advances.

The third change is the practical use of resources in a space environment. How can we use the water and minerals that exist on the moon and Mars? We can say that mankind has developed rockets and manned spacecraft for pursuing that possibility. Life in space may no longer be a dream in the future if we can develop and improve the cosmic environment.

I am sure that engineers of Meitec are facing various issues and problems as they engage in design and development work for customers each day. I would like them to maintain their passion for finding solutions to these issues and problems. Possibilities disappear the moment we think something is impossible. In its long history, space development has come up against walls many times. Each of those walls nudged the development forward and improved its accuracy. That is how space development has succeeded. It is a result of the proactive challenges the mankind and engineers have made with their strong desire to realize something without ever giving up.

Dreams are not something that come true on their own. We make them come true. The very fact of space development demonstrates their realizability.