The Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), also known with the nickname Kibo (きぼう Kibō^?, Hope), is a Japanese science module for the International Space Station (ISS) developed by JAXA.

It is the largest single ISS module. The first two pieces of the module were launched on space shuttle missions STS-123 and STS-124. The third and final components were launched on STS-127.

Established in May 1990.

Since its foundation in 1990, Japan Manned Space Systems Corporation (JAMSS) has been a focal point as a systems integrator of development, operations and utilization of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), which is called “Kibo”. Kibo is part of the International Space Station (ISS) that was built by 15 nations as a multi-national cooperative program. The corporate mission is to develop and establish manned space technologies in Japan. Toward this goal, JAMSS initially recruited the best talents from 60 leading companies of Japan.

1. Operation and utilization support of JEM(Japanese Experiment module ”Kibo”) / ISS(International Space Station)
2. Safety and Product Assurance of space systems.
3. Utilization of satellites (such as earth observation, communication 
and navigation satellites) 
4. Promotion of space commercial utilization.

Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. Lockheed Martin employs 123,000 people worldwide. 

Lockheed Martin is one of the world's largest defense contractors; In 2009, 74% of Lockheed Martin's revenues came from military sales. It received 7.1% of the funds paid out by the Pentagon.

Lockheed Martin operates in four business segments. These comprise, Aeronautics (27%), Electronic Systems (27%), Information Systems & Global Solutions (27%), and Space Systems (19%).

Intelsat 28, formerly New Dawn, is a communications satellite produced and run by Intelsat. It is positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 33 degrees east and serving TV and broadband communications to Africa.

It is based around the STAR-2 satellite platform.

Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC, though commonly referred to as Orbital) is an American company which specializes in the manufacturing and launch of satellites. Its Launch Systems Group is heavily involved with missile defense launch systems. Orbital formerly owned ORBIMAGE (now GeoEye) and the Magellan line of GPS receivers, though they are now divested (the latter toThales).

It has its headquarters in the Dulles area of unincorporated Loudoun County,Virginia, United States.

Orbital Sciences since inception has built 569 launch vehicles with 82 more to be delivered by 2015. 174 satellites have been built by the company since 1982 with 24 more to be delivered by 2015. Orbital has a 40% share of the interceptor market, 55% share of the small communications satellite market, and a 60% share of the small launch vehicles market. The company is expanding into the medium size launch vehicles and satellites market with the development of the Antares rocket and the acquisition of the General Dynamics Advanced Information System Satellite division.

The China National Space Administration (CNSA, Chinese: 国家航天局; pinyin: Guó Jiā Háng Tiān Jú, literally "National Astronautics Department") is the national space agency of the People's Republic of China responsible for the national space program.^[2] It is responsible for planning and development of space activities. CNSA and China Aerospace Corporation (CASC) assumed the authority over space development efforts previously held by the Ministry of Aerospace Industry.

The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is a major NASA space research laboratory established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center. GSFC employs approximately 10,000 civil servants and contractors, and is located approximately 6.5 miles (10.5 km) northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA. GSFC, one of ten major NASA field centers, is named in recognition of Dr. Robert H. Goddard (1882–1945), the pioneer of modern rocket propulsion in the United States.

GSFC is the largest combined organization of scientists and engineers in the United States dedicated to increasing knowledge of the Earth, the Solar System, and the Universe via observations from space. GSFC is a major U.S. laboratory for developing and operating unmanned scientific spacecraft. GSFC conducts scientific investigation, development and operation of space systems, and development of related technologies. Goddard scientists can develop and support a mission, and Goddard engineers and technicians can design and build the spacecraft for that mission. Goddard scientist John C. Mather shared the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on COBE.

GSFC also operates two spaceflight tracking and data acquisition networks (the Space Network and the Near Earth Network), develops and maintains advanced space and Earth science data information systems, and develops satellite systems for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

GSFC manages operations for many NASA and international missions including the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the Explorer program, the Discovery Program, the Earth Observing System (EOS), INTEGRAL, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) and Swift. Past missions managed by GSFC include the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, SMM, COBE, IUE, and ROSAT. Typically, unmanned earth observation missions and observatories in Earth orbit are managed by GSFC, while unmanned planetary missions are managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

The Guiana Space Centre (French: Centre Spatial Guyanais - CSG) is a French spaceport near Kourou in French Guiana.

Operational since 1968, it is particularly suitable as a location for a spaceport due to its proximity to the equator, and that launches are in a favourable direction over water. The European Space Agency (ESA), the French space agency CNES, and the commercial Arianespace company conduct launches from Kourou. This is the spaceport used to by ESA to send supplies to the International Space Station.

The Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES) (English: National Centre for Space Studies) is the French space agency.

Established under President Charles de Gaulle in 1961, its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is under the supervision of the French Ministries of Defence and Research. It operates out of the Guiana Space Centre, but also has payloads launched from space centres operated by other countries. CNES formerly was responsible for the training of French astronauts, the last active CNES astronauts transferred to the European Space Agency in 2001. 

CNES concentrates on five areas:

• access to space
• civil applications of space
• sustainable development
• science and technology research
• security and defence

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) (German: Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V.) is the national centre for aerospace, energy and transportation research of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has multiple locations throughout Germany. Its headquarters are located in Cologne. It is engaged in a wide range of research and development projects in national and international partnerships.

In addition to conducting its own research projects, DLR also acts as the German space agency. As such, it is responsible for planning and implementing the German space programme on behalf of the German federal government. As project management agency, DLR also coordinates and answers for the technical and organisational implementation of projects funded by a number of German federal ministries.