Photo/Illutration The two new candidate astronauts, Ayu Yoneda, left, and Makoto Suwa, on screen, shake hands virtually in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward on Feb. 28. (Shigetaka Kodama)

Japan’s space agency has selected two new candidate astronauts to join its ranks who could even become the first Japanese to set foot on the moon.

The science and technology minister announced the two picks on Feb. 28: Makoto Suwa, 46, a disaster risk management specialist at the World Bank, and Ayu Yoneda, 28, a physician at the Japanese Red Cross Medical Center.

After going through more rounds of training and final assessments, the pair will become the 12th and 13th people sent into space by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

Yoneda could be the third Japanese woman in space and the youngest among the nation’s active astronauts.

The two may become the first Japanese to land on the moon under NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface and send the first humans to Mars.

In January 2023, Japan and the United States signed a framework agreement to collaborate on Artemis and other space projects.

JAXA recruited new astronauts for the first time since 2009.

A record 4,127 people applied by April 2022 to be astronauts, more than four times higher than last time.

That was due to the relaxed requirements aimed at welcoming applicants of all ages and backgrounds.

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