As it has been 10 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake, a video of astronaut Soichi Noguchi sending a message to the world from the International Space Station has been released to express his gratitude for the support received from overseas after the earthquake. I did.
This video was created with the cooperation of JAXA = Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency by 42 municipalities in the affected Tohoku region and organizations that support the affected areas, and was released on the Internet on the 11th.
Among them, astronaut Soichi Noguchi, who is staying at the International Space Station, read aloud the message sent by the victims and said, "In the days of despair, the support provided by everyone in the world is exactly what it is. It was our light. It is thanks to everyone in the world who has supported us to create a future full of smiles. "
Then, the words "Thank you" were written in more than 70 languages, and a banner with a height of 1 meter and a width of 7 meters was introduced, with the smiling faces of children in the disaster area and photographs of the disaster area where reconstruction was progressing.
In the Great East Japan Earthquake, disaster relief teams from each country helped the victims, and according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, relief supplies and donations were delivered from 128 countries and regions, as well as international organizations.
The background banner was created by an elementary school student in Kawamata Town, Fukushima Prefecture.
In the video in which Soichi Noguchi conveys a message of gratitude for the reconstruction assistance of the Great East Japan Earthquake, a banner 1 meter long and 7 meters wide is displayed in the background.
This banner was made in October last year by a sixth grader at Fukuda Elementary School in Kawamata Town, Fukushima Prefecture, which is one of the disaster areas, by sewing silk cloth, which is a specialty of the town.
Pictures of the smiling faces of children in the disaster area of Tohoku and the buildings that symbolize the reconstruction, such as the Okuma Town Hall and JR Futaba Station, which were built after the earthquake, are printed.
In addition, the words "Thank you" are written in more than 70 languages as words of gratitude to the countries and regions that supported Japan, and were delivered to the International Space Station by an American rocket in February. I did.
Yoichi Hasegawa, CEO of the general foundation "One Earth" who planned the banner making, said, "It is a great feeling that images that condense the thoughts of 10 years of reconstruction in the disaster area will be delivered from space, and the people in the disaster area I would be happy if you could think the same way. "