JAXA to supply hardware and H3 launch services for ESA’s Ramses mission to Apophis

Japan’s space agency and the European Space Agency have formally agreed to cooperate on planetary defense and on ESA’s Ramses mission to asteroid Apophis, with JAXA set to provide key spacecraft hardware and launch services on Japan’s H3 rocket, according to JAXA.

JAXA said Thursday, May 8, in Japan that the agreements were signed a day earlier at the Embassy of Italy in Berlin. The event was hosted by the Italian Embassy in Berlin in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency, or ASI, JAXA said. The signatories were JAXA President Hiroshi Yamakawa and ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher. JAXA said the Berlin event was held in light of ESA’s selection of OHB Italia as prime contractor for the mission.

The mission, Ramses — short for Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety — is an ESA-led effort to rendezvous with and study the near-Earth asteroid (99942) Apophis before its exceptionally close pass by Earth on April 13, 2029. That flyby is expected to be safe, with no impact forecast. NASA and ESA have said Apophis will pass about 32,000 kilometers, or roughly 20,000 miles, above Earth’s surface, bringing it closer than geostationary orbit. The encounter is scientifically important because it will give researchers a rare chance to observe how Earth’s gravity may alter an asteroid’s surface, rotation and path.

Under the new agreement, JAXA said it will contribute lightweight solar array wings, a thermal infrared imager known as TIRI, and launch services using the H3 rocket, Japan’s new flagship launch vehicle. The signing turns into a formal workshare a collaboration that ESA and JAXA had discussed publicly in 2024 and 2025, as Ramses moved from concept into development.

ESA has said Ramses is targeting a spring 2028 launch window. The agency said the mission completed its Critical Design Review on Feb. 6, 2026, a major milestone indicating the design is ready to move toward manufacturing and assembly. ESA also said it signed the main spacecraft contract with OHB Italia on Feb. 10, 2026. That contract was reported at about 81.2 million euros.

The formalization of Japan’s role comes as Ramses gathers momentum ahead of a narrow timeline tied to Apophis’ 2029 flyby. The asteroid’s close but safe approach is one of the most closely watched near-Earth object events of the decade, and space agencies see it as a rare real-world opportunity to sharpen planetary defense science without an actual threat to Earth.

The agreement also adds to broader international preparation for 2029, which the United Nations has designated the International Year of Asteroid Awareness and Planetary Defence.