Expectations for the Graduate School of Frontier Exploration in Earth and Space

To deliver new experiential value through Starlink, we are working with experts inside and outside the company on the activities necessary to deploy this technology in the real world. We are also engaged in the operation and maintenance of antennas at our Yamaguchi Satellite Earth Station and in developing new regulatory frameworks by way of the International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R). Looking ahead, we aim to establish telecommunications infrastructure connecting Earth and the Moon as part of our vision for the evolution of space communications, thereby contributing to expanding the range of human activity. Achieving this requires people capable of integrating scientific understanding of the space environment, engineering expertise related to telecommunications equipment and satellite systems, and management skills that ensure long-term business sustainability, including regulatory considerations. For this reason, we find tremendous value and appeal in the Graduate School of Frontier Exploration in Earth and Space’s integrated educational approach spanning science, engineering, and management.

In addition, the practical, project-based learning environment will provide an ideal foundation for cultivating the systems thinking and global collaboration skills required by the future space industry, so we have high expectations for the graduate school as a partner in creating the space businesses of the future.

・Development and design engineers for satellite ground stations, spaceborne telecommunications systems, and lunar mobile telecommunications systems
These engineers would play a central role in building space telecommunications infrastructure, working on ground station equipment, communication protocols, and overall system design, with an eye toward realizing satellite communication services and establishing telecommunications infrastructure connecting Earth and the Moon.

・Business development and planning for space telecommunications services
These positions involve planning and creating new services and solutions for both space and Earth by utilizing advanced technologies and data generated through space telecommunications. They would also be engaged in business development and planning that integrate technologies beyond the traditional scope of astrophysics and space engineering, including generative AI. These positions are closely interconnected, so we are convinced that the broad, cross-disciplinary perspective cultivated through the Graduate School of Frontier Exploration in Earth and Space’s integration of science, engineering, and management will serve as a catalyst for strengthening those connections.

・Expertise in space engineering
Graduates are expected to contribute immediately to our advanced technology development efforts, whether through developing telecommunications equipment capable of withstanding the Moon’s severe temperature fluctuations and radiation from a materials engineering perspective, or through designing telecommunications infrastructure based on an understanding of lunar regolith properties.

・Systems engineering and project management skills
By maintaining a bird’s-eye view of the complex space telecommunications ecosystem, including satellites, ground stations, control systems, and end users, and integrating their design, construction, and operation, graduates will be able to play central roles in bringing projects to successful completion.

・Global perspective and business vision
In international space development projects, cooperating with partners from different countries to build new international standards and business models grounded in KDDI's telecommunications technologies requires the ability to understand and collaborate across a diverse range of values.