AE Seminar
"Understanding Space and Society as Systems: Systems Engineering Approaches for Aerospace and Societal Challenges"
Naohiko Kohtake
Professor at the Graduate School of System Design and Management, Keio University, and a Visiting Professor at the Center for Design Research, Stanford University.
Thursday, September 10
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Guggenheim 442
About the Seminar:
Complex socio-technical systems can be better understood, designed, and improved through systems engineering approaches. This seminar explores how aerospace systems involve not only hardware and software, but also people, organizations, operations, policies, and international collaboration. Drawing on examples from rocket development, international space cooperation, and the analysis of a lunar landing failure, the talk illustrates how systems engineering provides an interdisciplinary framework for understanding and realizing successful systems under such complexity.
The seminar will also introduce Space-Scale IoT, a large-scale systems architecture integrating satellites, GNSS, remote sensing, ground sensors, AI, and robotics. By connecting space-based and terrestrial systems, this concept has the potential to contribute to addressing a wide range of societal challenges.
Through these examples, the talk discusses the growing importance of viewing both space and society through a systems perspective—and what this perspective can offer for the future of aerospace engineering, innovation, and society.
About the Speaker
Naohiko Kohtake is a Professor at the Graduate School of System Design and Management, Keio University, and a Visiting Professor at the Center for Design Research, Stanford University. He began his career at JAXA, where he worked on the H-IIA launch vehicle and international projects with ESA and NASA. His research focuses on systems engineering and its application to innovative social services and complex socio-technical systems. Prof. Kohtake is a Steering Committee Member of Multi-GNSS Asia, a Project Officer for Japan’s Space Strategy Fund, and serves as Chair of a governmental committee responsible for evaluating JAXA. He received his B.E., M.E., and Ph.D. degrees from Keio University in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and Media and Governance, respectively. He has received numerous honors, including the MEXT Minister’s Award from the Government of Japan.
