Photo/Illutration Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, left, arrives at the International Space Station on Aug. 27. (Provided by JAXA and NASA)

WASHINGTON--Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa arrived at the International Space Station for his second stay there on Aug. 27, a stint that will last six months, one month longer than his first mission more than a decade ago. 

Furukawa, 59, and three other astronauts were welcomed by their seven colleagues at the ISS after their SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft successfully docked with the station.

“I’m very excited to work in this brilliant international team,” said Furukawa via a live video call from the ISS.

Furukawa’s half-year mission includes a test run on a new carbon dioxide remover, putting ultra-compact satellites into orbit and experiments to grow high-quality protein crystals.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency selected Furukawa as an astronaut candidate in 1999. He stayed at the ISS for more than five months in 2011 on his first space mission.

In January, Furukawa made headlines when he publicly apologized for data fabrication in research conducted by a JAXA team he had led.

The space agency issued a warning to Furukawa over the issue, but it didn’t change its plans to send the astronaut into space for his second ISS mission.

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