Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

FUKUSHIMA, Japan - Women box up ''Akatsuki'' peaches in the city of Fukushima on Aug. 10, 2011, as shipments of the local specialty hit their peak in the northeastern Japan city.

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

FUKUSHIMA, Japan - Women box up ''Akatsuki'' peaches in the city of Fukushima on Aug. 10, 2011, as shipments of the local specialty hit their peak in the northeastern Japan city.

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Masato Nakamura (front), a project manager at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, speaks during a press conference at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 8, 2010. He said Japanese space probe Akatsuki failed to enter orbit around Venus.

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Masato Nakamura (R), a project manager at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, speaks during a press conference at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 8, 2010. He said Japanese space probe Akatsuki failed to enter orbit around Venus.

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Personnel involved in Japan's planetary exploration mission with Venus probe Akatsuki stare at monitors at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 7, 2010, as communication with the probe was temporarily lost. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus on the same day. (Pool photo by Kyodo News)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Photo taken at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture shows a model of Japanese space probe Akatsuki's thruster, a liquid rocket engine, designed to propel the probe into orbit. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus by retrofiring the device on Dec. 7, 2010.

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Personnel involved in Japan's planetary exploration mission with Venus probe Akatsuki look at data sent from the probe on monitors at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 7, 2010. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus on the same day. (Pool photo by Kyodo News)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - People gather at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture to keep track on news about Japanese space probe Akatsuki on Dec. 7, 2010. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus the same day.

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010.

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010.

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010.

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010.

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010.

Rocket carrying Venus probe Akatsuki set to blast off into space

Rocket carrying Venus probe Akatsuki set to blast off into space

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - The H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, Japan's new planetary probe designed to travel to Venus to examine its climate, is seen at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on May 20, 2010, a day before its launch. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency had postponed the liftoff on May 18 due to bad weather.

Venus probe launch put off

Venus probe launch put off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - An H-2A rocket stands on its launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 18, 2010. The launch of the rocket carrying the Venue probe Akatsuki was postponed that day due to poor weather conditions.

Rocket to launch Venus probe

Rocket to launch Venus probe

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - An H-2A rocket arrives at its launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center, southwestern Japan, on May 17, 2010. The rocket carrying Venus climate orbiter Akatsuki is scheduled to lift off the following day.

Venus probe Akatsuki unveiled

Venus probe Akatsuki unveiled

TOKYO, Japan - The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency unveils the new Akatsuki space probe in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Nov. 27, 2009. The 2.1-meter-high probe will examine Venus' climate.

Japan confirms probe in orbit around Venus after 5-yr detour

Japan confirms probe in orbit around Venus after 5-yr detour

Masato Nakamura, a professor at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, holds a press conference in Sagamihara, near Tokyo, on Dec. 9, 2015 while showing a picture of Venus taken by JAXA's Akatsuki probe. JAXA confirmed that Akatsuki has successfully entered orbit around Venus and begun testing equipment to observe meteorological phenomena on the planet. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Masato Nakamura, professor at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, meets with reporters in front of a model of its probe Akatsuki on Dec. 7, 2015, at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus near Tokyo on Dec. 7, 2015, after the probe entered orbit around Venus to observe the planet's atmosphere. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

People visiting the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus near Tokyo applaud on Dec. 7, 2015, as the thrusters of its probe Akatsuki burnt to put it into orbit around Venus to observe its atmosphere. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Masato Nakamura, professor at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, meets with reporters in front of a model of its probe Akatsuki on Dec. 7, 2015, at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus near Tokyo on Dec. 7, 2015, after the probe entered orbit around Venus to observe the planet's atmosphere. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Japan makes 2nd attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Monitor image shows those working in the control room of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency at its Sagamihara Campus near Tokyo applauding on Dec. 7, 2015, as the thrusters of its probe Akatsuki burnt to put it into orbit around Venus to observe its atmosphere. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan makes second attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Japan makes second attempt to put probe into Venus' orbit

Photo taken Nov. 24, 2015, shows Chikako Hirose of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, with a model of the probe Akatsuki. She spent two and a half years finding a new orbit to enable the probe to observe Venus' atmosphere. The agency carried out its second attempt on Dec. 7 to put the probe into Venus' orbit. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Shipments of specialty peaches reach peak

Shipments of specialty peaches reach peak

Photo taken July 28, 2015, in the northeastern Japan city of Fukushima shows the specialty "Akatsuki" peaches of the region. Shipments of the peaches have reached their peak. An official of a local agricultural organization said farmers have struggled to ship them since the area was hit by the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

JAXA to conduct orbit control of Venus probe Akatsuki

JAXA to conduct orbit control of Venus probe Akatsuki

Professor Masato Nakamura of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency talks about JAXA's plan to adjust the orbit of its Venus probe Akatsuki in Tokyo on July 9, 2015. An orbit control, divided in three performances, will be conducted later this month, aiming to inject the probe into the Venus orbit in December 2015. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

JAXA's Akatsuki probe to make 2nd attempt to enter Venus orbit

JAXA's Akatsuki probe to make 2nd attempt to enter Venus orbit

Masato Nakamura, a professor with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, explains in Tokyo on Feb. 6, 2015, about JAXA's plan to make a second attempt on Dec. 7 to inject its Venus climate probe "Akatsuki" into orbit after it failed in 2010 due to engine trouble. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Japan's 'Just A Way' named best racehorse in 2014

Japan's 'Just A Way' named best racehorse in 2014

Jockey Yuichi Fukunaga (far L), trainer Naosuke Sugai (2nd from L) and owner Akatsuki Yamatoya (far R) attend an award ceremony in London on Jan. 20, 2015, marking the nomination of "Just A Way" as the world's best racehorse for 2014, the first Japan-bred horse to win the honor based on the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities' rankings. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

JAXA Prof. explains plan to put Akatsuki into Venus orbit

JAXA Prof. explains plan to put Akatsuki into Venus orbit

Masato Nakamura, project manager of the Japanese Venus orbiter project at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, explains on Nov. 9, 2015, in Tokyo JAXA's second attempt to put the Venus Climate Orbiter Akatsuki into the Venus orbit on Dec. 7. JAXA will brief on the result on Dec. 9. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Rocket to launch Venus probe

Rocket to launch Venus probe

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - An H-2A rocket arrives at its launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center, southwestern Japan, on May 17, 2010. The rocket carrying Venus climate orbiter Akatsuki is scheduled to lift off the following day. (Kyodo)

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

FUKUSHIMA, Japan - Women box up ''Akatsuki'' peaches in the city of Fukushima on Aug. 10, 2011, as shipments of the local specialty hit their peak in the northeastern Japan city. (Kyodo)

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

Peak shipments of Fukushima peaches

FUKUSHIMA, Japan - Women box up ''Akatsuki'' peaches in the city of Fukushima on Aug. 10, 2011, as shipments of the local specialty hit their peak in the northeastern Japan city. (Kyodo)

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010. (Kyodo)

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010. (Kyodo)

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010. (Kyodo)

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010. (Kyodo)

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

Japan rocket carrying Venus probe blasts off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - Japan's H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, which is set to become the country's first probe to orbit Venus to examine its climate, blasts off into space from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 21, 2010. (Kyodo)

Rocket carrying Venus probe Akatsuki set to blast off into space

Rocket carrying Venus probe Akatsuki set to blast off into space

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - The H-2A rocket carrying Akatsuki, Japan's new planetary probe designed to travel to Venus to examine its climate, is seen at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on May 20, 2010, a day before its launch. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency had postponed the liftoff on May 18 due to bad weather. (Kyodo)

Venus probe launch put off

Venus probe launch put off

TANEGASHIMA, Japan - An H-2A rocket stands on its launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 18, 2010. The launch of the rocket carrying the Venue probe Akatsuki was postponed that day due to poor weather conditions. (Kyodo)

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Masato Nakamura (R), a project manager at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, speaks during a press conference at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 8, 2010. He said Japanese space probe Akatsuki failed to enter orbit around Venus. (Kyodo)

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

Akatsuki fails in Venus mission

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Masato Nakamura (front), a project manager at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, speaks during a press conference at JAXA's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 8, 2010. He said Japanese space probe Akatsuki failed to enter orbit around Venus. (Kyodo)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - People gather at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture to keep track on news about Japanese space probe Akatsuki on Dec. 7, 2010. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus the same day. (Kyodo)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Personnel involved in Japan's planetary exploration mission with Venus probe Akatsuki stare at monitors at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 7, 2010, as communication with the probe was temporarily lost. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus on the same day. (Pool photo by Kyodo News)(Kyodo)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Personnel involved in Japan's planetary exploration mission with Venus probe Akatsuki look at data sent from the probe on monitors at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture on Dec. 7, 2010. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus on the same day. (Pool photo by Kyodo News)(Kyodo)

Venus probe Akatsuki

Venus probe Akatsuki

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Photo taken at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Sagamihara Campus in Kanagawa Prefecture shows a model of Japanese space probe Akatsuki's thruster, a liquid rocket engine, designed to propel the probe into orbit. Akatsuki was set to go into orbit around Venus by retrofiring the device on Dec. 7, 2010. (Kyodo)

Venus probe Akatsuki unveiled

Venus probe Akatsuki unveiled

TOKYO, Japan - The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency unveils the new Akatsuki space probe in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Nov. 27, 2009. The 2.1-meter-high probe will examine Venus' climate. (Kyodo)