ispace

With the introduction of the new ULTRA lunar lander model, we are revising our planned mid-term mission schedule and mission numbers. The current ispace-U.S. Mission 3 (Draper Commercial Mission 1) was selected to carry NASA’s CLPS Task Order CP-12 as a member of Team Draper. As a result of our recent updates, including the replacement of the engine and the transition from APEX 1.0 to the integrated model ULTRA, ispace-U.S. has updated its first U.S. mission to 2030. ispace-U.S. has proposed the updated task plan for CP-12 following careful discussions and agreement with its primary Mission 3 customer Draper, which is pending NASA approval. Additionally, based on our mission heritage, ispace is entering the market with a new Lunar Connect Service which provides communications and positioning services by using lunar orbit transport technology. The business plan calls for launch of at least five of its lunar orbit satellites by 2030. Mission 3 (formerly Mission 4), is currently under development in Japan with funding from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s (METI) SBIR grant, and will continue to target a 2028 launch.

Today, we announced our full year financial results for the fiscal year ending March 2026, covering two distinct halves: the first half marked by the challenge of Mission 2, and the second half as laying the groundwork for our next leap forward. Key business highlights: 1) During the second half of the year, ispace was selected for the second phase of Japan’s Space Strategy Fund, secured funding from the European Space Agency (ESA), completed a third-party allotment and public offering raising approximately 18 billion yen, and signed payload service agreements with South Korea’s UEL and the University of Leicester in the UK. 2) ispace announced the new “ULTRA” lunar lander model resulting from the integration of the Japanese and U.S. landers and the rescheduled ispace-U.S.’ first mission. While entailing short-term challenges, will yield significant long-term benefits. The ULTRA lander will enable us to fully meet the needs of customers seeking high quality and development efficiency, and that it will also contribute to NASA’s efforts to accelerate lunar development through bold investments. For more information, read here: ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=8873

We were honored to welcome a delegation from the U.S. Embassy in Japan, led by Deputy Chief of Mission Aaron D. Snipe, to our Nihonbashi, Tokyo headquarters. During the visit, our teams discussed the growing importance of international cooperation in lunar exploration and the expanding opportunities created through collaboration between Japan and the United States across the space industry. We were pleased to share more about our ULTRA lunar lander, which brings together expertise from our global team--including our offices in Japan and the United States--as we continue working toward a sustainable cislunar economy. @usembassytokyo #ispace #ULTRA #LunarExploration #SpaceIndustry #USJapan #InternationalCooperation

With 🇺🇸 🇯🇵 space companies partnering to advance next‑generation lunar landers and rovers, ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada toured Deputy Chief of Mission Aaron Snipe through the new @ispace_inc operations center in Tokyo. A great discussion on space exploration, future missions — and the eternal debate over the best Star Wars movie. 🪐🛸🌖 #TheEmpireStrikesBackOfCourse

Witness the next step in the assembly of our ULTRA lunar lander Structural Model (SM)! In this behind-the-scenes clip, our engineering team prepares to integrate the upper assembly with the lander’s primary structure—an important milestone in the assembly, integration, and test (AIT) campaign for ULTRA. Stay tuned for upcoming videos, where we’ll showcase even more moments from this process. #ispace #ULTRA #LunarLander #Engineering #SpaceExploration

📣Announcement: ispace and the University of Leicester (UoL) have sign a payload service agreement for lunar Raman spectrometer mission! The payload to be delivered to the lunar surface on a future ispace mission is a Raman analytical spectroscopy instrument adapted from the original laser-based spectrometer developed for the ExoMars mission, and will be delivered by the University of Leicester, in collaboration with INTA (Madrid), the University of Aberdeen, RAL Space, and the University of Valladolid. The instrument will analyze the lunar surface to determine its molecular composition and identify resources that could support future human exploration missions. The Raman Spectrometer project is funded under the UK Space Agency (UKSA) Science and Exploration Bilateral Fund and represents a key step in advancing scientific instrumentation for in-situ lunar analysis. Under the agreement, ispace will provide payload transportation services through its Japanese entity aboard a future mission using its newly introduced ULTRA lunar lander. 🌕 Read more here: ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=8866 #ispace #ULTRA #LunarLander #SpaceExploration

Behind every successful lunar mission is a team of dedicated engineers. Today, we’re excited to share new images of our engineers carefully assembling the structural model (SM) of our ULTRA lunar lander! Their precision and attention to detail are essential as we prepare for the next phase: a rigorous testing campaign. The ULTRA SM is configured to replicate key structural, mass, interface, and environmental characteristics of the flight model in order to produce representative testing conditions and results—swipe through to catch a closer look at a propulsion tank test article! #ispace #ULTRA #LunarExploration #Engineering #Teamwork

📣 Announcement: ispace-EUROPE welcomed Japanese Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi to our Luxembourg headquarters We were honored to welcome a high-level Japanese delegation led by Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications of Japan and President of the Japan–Luxembourg Parliamentary Friendship League, to ispace-EUROPE, our Luxembourg headquarters. The visit served as an opportunity to symbolize the strengthening of relations between the Japan and Luxembourg in the fields of innovation, advanced technologies, and space exploration. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Minister Hayashi and the members of the delegation for their visit. With major advances underway in lunar development and orbital satellite infrastructure, we hope this visit will help strengthen global cooperation between Japan and Europe. Read here for more: ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=8856 #ispace #SpaceExploration #LunarExploration #Innovation #SpaceTech #Japan #Luxembourg #SpaceNews

We’re excited to share another behind-the-scenes look at the assembly, integration, and testing of the ULTRA lunar lander’s Structural Model! 🌙 Our talented engineers have been hard at work, meticulously assembling key components and ensuring every detail meets our rigorous standards. Here you can see our team in action, joined by our Founder & CEO Takeshi Hakamada, who visited on site to personally inspect the progress and support the team as we move closer to our next milestone. Each step brings us closer to realizing our vision: to extend human presence into outer space through sustainable lunar exploration. Swipe through to see: 1️⃣ Our CEO inspecting ULTRA lander SM components 2️⃣ Engineers collaborating on assembly 3️⃣ Integration and testing in progress Stay tuned for more updates as we continue our journey to the Moon! #ispace #ULTRAlander #LunarExploration #Teamwork #Innovation

We were honored to welcome a high-level Japanese delegation, including Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications of Japan and President of the Japan–Luxembourg Parliamentary Friendship League (JLPFL) Yoshimasa Hayashi, to ispace-EUROPE. Thank you Minister Hayashi (@hayashi09615064 ) for taking time to visit our Luxembourg entity.

🌕 May brings a rare celestial rhythm: two Full Moons in a single calendar month! The first, known as the “Flower Moon,” marks a season of growth, as spring blossoms across the Northern Hemisphere. The second, often called a “Blue Moon,” highlights the precision and cadence of the Moon’s orbit—timing that is critical not only to how we experience it from Earth, but also to how we reach it. These lunar cycles shape mission design, from launch windows to landing opportunities. If your skies are clear, take a moment to look up tonight, and follow along as we continue our lunar exploration journey. #ispace #Moon #FullMoon #LunarExploration

🤖 We are at SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 with the RESILIENCE lunar lander! As Asia’s largest global innovation conference, there are many exciting exhibitions on display. We appreciate everyone who has taken interest in the full-scale replica of our RESILIENCE lander at the 📍Future Experience Pavilion! The event runs through Wednesday, so if you haven’t stopped by yet, there’s still time! ✨ #STT2026 #みんなでスシテック #ispace #MoonLander #SpaceExploration

🌕 Today, April 26, marks ispace’s “Never Quit the Lunar Quest” (NQLQ) Day. On this day in 2023, we made our first lunar landing attempt with HAKUTO-R Mission 1. As the first commercial lunar landing attempt, this was a defining moment not only for us at ispace, but for the entire industry. It was a milestone that pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in commercial lunar exploration and helped pave the way for the growing cislunar economy we see today. Three years on, rapid evolution has continued in our company and across the global space sector. Demand for lunar services is accelerating, expectations are rising, and new challenges lie ahead. NQLQ Day is a reminder of why we started—and where we’re going—representing the driving force behind our determination and continued efforts. At ispace, WE-GO-BEYOND. 📸: Earth as seen from lunar orbit, captured by cameras aboard our RESILIENCE lunar lander during Mission 2. #ispace #NQLQDay #NeverQuitTheLunarQuest #ULTRA #Moon #WeGoBeyond

🌏 Come find ispace at the SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 – FUTURE EXPERIENCE PAVILLION! SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026 will be held at Tokyo Big Sight for three days starting April 27. Come check out our exhibition, which will feature a full-scale model of our RESILIENCE lunar lander, used during Mission 1&2. 📍 Visit us at the Future Experience Pavilion on the 4th floor to take a photo with the model and learn more about our vision and upcoming missions! #STT2026 #みんなでスシテック #ispace #MoonLander #SpaceExploration

Happy Earth Day from all of us at ispace! 🌱 Every journey toward the Moon begins on Earth. We envision a future where Earth and the Moon form a connected ecosystem—one that helps enrich life here on our home planet. Through our work, we will continue pioneering the development of a sustainable cislunar economy. 🌍🌕 This stunning image of our home—the beautiful blue marble we call Earth—was captured by the RESILIENCE lunar lander during ispace Mission 2. #EarthDay #ispace #ForTheMoon #WeGoBeyond

From public-private partnerships to the future of space stations—what’s next for space policy? At the Commercial Space Policy Summit, we’re convening leaders across government and industry for a featured Federal Aviation Administration/AST briefing with Minh Nguyen, Ph.D and two forward-looking panels: One Small Step: Perfecting Public-Private Partnerships Featuring: Adrian Mangiuca (Rational Futures), Kevin Coggins (@NASA ), Elizabeth Kryst (@ispace_inc ), and Andrew Bunker (@RocketLab) Commercializing the Cosmos: The Future of Space Stations Featuring: Loren Grush (@Bloomberg ), Max Haot (@vast ), Marshall Smith (@Starlab_Space ), and Mike Gold (@Redwire Space) Join Us on Wednesday, May 20, 3:30pm. Be sure to register for early bird registration ending on April 20. Location: Washington D.C. Register: ascend.events Registration includes full access to ASCEND #CommercialSpace #SpacePolicy #ASCEND2026 #AIAA #Vast #RocketLab #SpaceX @aiaa

🌙 Strengthening ispace’s growing engagement in Saudi Arabia, we are pleased to share that we have signed an agreement with the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) to expand lunar technology collaboration! Under the agreement, ispace and KACST will explore collaboration across the design, manufacturing, testing, and operation of lunar exploration technologies, including surface exploration and rover capabilities, supported by our team at ispace-EUROPE. Reflecting a shared commitment to advancing lunar exploration, this collaboration will also investigate long-term initiatives to support lunar capability development within the Kingdom, as well as opportunities for the transportation of Saudi Arabian payloads to the Moon. Together with our existing agreement with KFUPM, this milestone supports the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and reinforces the importance of international collaboration in the global lunar economy. Read more here: ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=8846

That’s a wrap on #SpaceSymposium 2026! This week, the energy across our industry was electric, driven by a broader sense of momentum around humanity’s return to the Moon. Recent developments, including NASA’s “Ignition” event, have reinforced a shared direction--accelerating progress toward a sustained lunar presence and a thriving cislunar economy. That momentum was reflected in every conversation throughout the week—from advancing mission capabilities to strengthening global partnerships that will help shape the next era of lunar exploration. A big thank you to everyone who visited the us at our booth and connected with our crew. 🌕 At ispace, we-go-beyond! @payloadspace @Redwire @SpaceFoundation #ispace #LunarExploration #Moon #Artemis #WeGoBeyond #SS41

📣 Announcement: ispace and Shimizu Corporation—a Japanese architecture, civil engineering, and general contracting firm—have signed a lunar infrastructure agreement concerning planning studies for infrastructure architecture in cislunar space! As international efforts toward lunar development accelerate, the importance of functions such as communications, data processing, and data management continues to grow. The two companies will jointly develop a basic concept for infrastructure in cislunar space, examine concepts regarding construction sites, facility configurations, construction methods, power, thermal, and communications management, and collaborate to explore the construction of a lunar data center. Read more here: ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=8819

It's great to be on the ground at #SpaceSymposium! We kicked off the week with meaningful conversations and new connections from across the global space community. Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth--we’re energized by the momentum across the industry following the return of Artemis II astronauts from lunar orbit, and the renewed excitement around missions to the Moon. That energy is carrying into every conversation here in Colorado Springs. 📍 If you haven’t visited yet, come find us at Booth 508, Broadmoor Hall to learn more about our upcoming lunar missions and what’s ahead for us at ispace. We look forward to continuing the conversation throughout the week. 🌕 See you tomorrow! #ispace #LunarExploration #SpaceIndustry

We’re proud to share that our CEO, Elizabeth Kryst, has joined the Board of Directors of the Commercial Space Federation (CSF). This appointment reflects ispace-U.S.’s growing role in shaping the future of the commercial space industry. Through this leadership, we’re strengthening our commitment to advancing policies that support a robust, competitive, and sustainable space ecosystem in the United States. At ispace-U.S., we’re focused on building the infrastructure that will enable long-term lunar operations—and we’re excited to help drive the industry forward alongside our partners. A huge thank you to CSF and Mr. Dave Cavossa, President of CSF, for a warm welcome. We are excited to push the boundaries of space exploration together.