Japanese Astronaut Kimiya Yui Returns to Earth Following Extended Stay on International Space Station

By Keiichi Nakane / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

14:45 JST, January 16, 2026

WASHINGTON — Astronaut Kimiya Yui, of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), arrived back on Earth on Thursday along with astronauts from the United States and Russia.

The four landed off the coast of California at about 3:40 a.m. in SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spaceship.

Yui, 55, safely returned following an extended stay at the International Space Station (ISS) which began on Aug. 2 last year, succeeding Takuya Onishi, 50. The astronaut worked on tasks such as operating robot arms to catch HTV-X, a new Japanese spacecraft responsible for delivering daily necessities and equipment to the space station, and setting up a machine for removing carbon dioxide from the air inside the ISS.

After the spaceship was recovered, Yui came out of the hatch, stood up and waved his hand with a big smile on his face.

The four astronauts were to initially come back to Earth in February or later, but the date was moved forward after one of them reported a problem with their health. JAXA has said that Yui has no health concerns.