Kimiya Yui

Who is Kimiya Yui?

Kimiya Yui is a Japanese astronaut candidate from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. He was selected in 2009.

Yui, from Nagano Prefecture, enrolled in the Japan Air Self-Defense Force after graduating from the National Defense Academy of Japan in 1992. He has piloted a F-15 Eagle fighter, and currently works in the Air Staff Office's Defense Planning Division. He is a Lieutenant Colonel.

Once he is trained as an astronaut, he will have the opportunity to fly to the International Space Station and engage in scientific experiments at Japan's Japanese Experiment Module space laboratory, as well as in the maintenance and operations of the station.

On April 16, 2012, NASA announced that Yui would serve as an aquanaut aboard the Aquarius underwater laboratory during the NEEMO 16 undersea exploration mission, scheduled to begin on June 11, 2012 and last twelve days. The NEEMO 16 crew successfully "splashed down" at 11:05 am on June 11. On the morning of June 12, Yui and his crewmates officially became aquanauts, having spent over 24 hours underwater. The crew safely returned to the surface on June 22.