The module will be placed in low Earth orbit and will primarily be used for biological and material physics research.
[4] The module is expected to be resupplied by the uncrewed HTV-X cargo spacecraft, and will likely be served by a retrievable space capsule.
[7] Japan has participated in the International Space Station (ISS) since its inception, and the Japanese Experiment Module Kibō has been a cornerstone in the country's human spaceflight program for decades.
In anticipation of the ISS being operated until around 2031 when it will likely be de-orbited, in January 2020 JAXA began to research possible options of human space activities in low Earth orbit (LEO).
[8] By January 2022, JAXA concluded that in order to make a smooth transition from Kibō to a commercial space station, it was best to continue participating in the ISS program after 2025, instead of modifying the HTV-X into an uncrewed space laboratory, or JAXA procuring a Crew Dragon from SpaceX to use as a free-flyer.
[12] JAXA then conducted a comparative analysis of potential scenarios, the results of which were reported in November 2022.