Photo/Illutration A mock-up space capsule used by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to conduct research (Provided by JAXA)

Japan’s space agency announced Nov. 25 that data was falsified  on a research project headed by astronaut Satoshi Furukawa simulating the effects of a prolonged stay in space, but said it was not his doing.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency explained that “inappropriate methods” were used and that Furukawa, 58, was not directly involved in the rewriting of the experiment data.

As a result, it said his planned flight to and stay on the International Space Station in 2023 would not be affected.

However, Furukawa will face disciplinary action as he had overall responsibility for the research project.

“This is a case that would be described by researchers and society in general as falsifying and rewriting data,” said Hiroshi Sasaki, a JAXA vice president who heads the Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate, at a Nov. 25 news conference. “We offer our deepest apology and will make every effort to prevent a recurrence.”

The research was conducted between 2016 and 2017 to examine the physiological and psychological changes individuals undergo due to stress from an extended stay in a closed environment, such as the ISS.

A mock-up closed environment module in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, was the site of the experiment that involved 40 individuals, who stayed in the capsule for 13 nights in groups of eight.

A research grant from the science ministry of 190 million yen ($1.4 million) was used for the project.

In November 2020, an outside committee evaluating the research turned up suspicious points, such as signs data had been rewritten.

JAXA officials then questioned the researchers who were involved in the project.

That investigation turned up five cases of arbitrarily assessing the psychological diagnosis made through interviews with the test subjects. There were also instances of entries that said three interviewers questioned the subjects when, in fact, only two were involved.

There were 15 instances of research results being rewritten. But those questioned denied deliberately rewriting the data. The decision was made to not write up a journal article based on the research results.

At the news conference, Sasaki admitted JAXA did not have the personnel with sufficient knowledge and experience in the medical field to adequately carry out the project. He added that there was no proper education and guidance of those who were involved in the research.

But he said Furukawa would be allowed to go ahead with his prolonged stay on the ISS to replace astronaut Koichi Wakata because his abilities in space were different from his responsibility as a researcher.

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