An international conference on exploration and science related to planetary defense was held at the University of Tokyo from 7 to 11 April 2025. Following the Hera Community Meeting (7-8th), the Apophis T-4 Meeting (9-10th) and the RAMSES Community Meeting (11th) were held, where the latest developments in space science were discussed.
https://www.hera-apophis-ramses-tokyo.org/en-us/
Participants at the Hera Community Meeting shared an overview of the latest status and operations of Hera and the status and observation results of its payloads following its Mars swing-by operation in March 2025. Additionally, payload updates such as AFC, HyperScout-H, TIRI, Milani CubeSat, and Juventas CubeSat were shared. Dr. Okada reported on the results of TIRI’s observations of Deimos and Mars during the Mars swing-by operation and proposed a plan for future observation operations.
Figure 1: Hera community meeting
At the Apophis T-4 conference, the latest research results on the orbit and physical characteristics of the asteroid Apophis, which will have a close encounter with Earth on April 13, 2029, were presented. In addition to active discussions among working groups on ground observations and data analysis, presentations and discussions were held on several exploration missions to Apophis.
The RAMSES Community Meeting featured presentations on the ESA-led RAMSES spacecraft and CubeSat payloads. Overviews were given of the primary payload AFC as well as TIRI, HAMLET, CHANCES, and RPS. A working group on modeling and experiments of terrain and surface changes during close encounters also gave a presentation. Dr. Toyota gave a presentation on the overall picture of JAXA’s contributions to RAMSES and the thin-film lightweight solar paddle, and me, Dr. Shimaki gave a presentation on TIRI from JAXA.
Figure 2: JAXA presentation at the RAMSES Community Meeting
Over 100 participants from around the world attended the week-long conference. The University of Tokyo’s Local Organizing Committee (LOC) warmly welcomed them, and the conference was a great success. We want to thank the LOC team for all the support they provided to make the participants’ stay comfortable.
The next milestone for Hera will be its arrival at the asteroid Didymos, scheduled for around December 2026. I felt we had outstanding teamwork as we looked ahead to the Apophis T-3 a year from now.
April 14, 2025
Yuri Shimaki, Hera-JAPAN