Japanese Astronaut Furukawa Begins Long Stay at ISS

Korolev, Russia, June 10 (Jiji Press)--Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa kicked off his five-month-plus stay at the International Space Station early Friday after a Russian spacecraft carrying him and two others docked with the facility.
The Soyuz TMA-02M spacecraft docked with the ISS above the South Atlantic Ocean at 1:18 a.m. local time (9:18 p.m. Thursday GMT). The three astronauts went aboard the space station at 4:34 a.m.
This is the first space voyage for the 47-year-old Japanese doctor, who underwent 12 years of training after he was selected as an astronaut.
He is the third Japanese astronaut to make a long stay at the ISS, after Koichi Wakata, 47, between March and July 2009 and Soichi Noguchi, 46, between December 2009 and June 2010.
From the ISS, Furukawa communicated with his family at a mission control center near Moscow.
"You are finally at bat," said his wife, Keiko, likening the space mission to the game of baseball he played up to university days.
"You don't have to hit a home run. Move up a base at a time and reach home safely," she said.
"Thank you," Furukawa replied with a smile.
During his stay, Furukawa will conduct a series of experiments, including those on plant growth and protein generation in zero gravity.
Furukawa also plans to participate in a medical examination system test, in which he will check his own brain waves and heartbeats to use the data for future health management of astronauts.
He is also eager to have contacts with people in northeastern Japan areas stricken by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Furukawa is slated to return to the Earth on Nov. 16.