Dr. YAMAKAWA currently resides and takes leadership role as the President of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) since April 2018.

He has engaged in numerous aerospace R&D and space project activities in JAXA as well as professorship at academia while having working experiences at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and ESA’s Space Technology Center (ESTEC).

He also held vital posts in his career with Secretariat of Strategic Headquarters for Space Policy, Cabinet Secretariat as the Secretary General, as well as a member of Committee for National Space Policy prior to becoming JAXA president.

His professional portfolio extends from orbital mechanics, trajectory optimization, space propulsion, and to space security.