Moon landing Japan: small spacecraft aims to make Japan the 5th nation on the moon
The moon has been visited lately by many new spacecraft, built by government space agencies, private companies and non-profit organizations. Some robotic explorers have orbited the moon, while others have landed on its surface.
The next spacecraft that will attempt to reach the lunar soil in one piece is from JAXA, the Japanese space agency, and is known as Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM. It is targeting a location near the Shioli Crater on the moon's side. If the landing is successful, Japan will become the fifth country to land on the moon, after the Soviet Union, the United States, China and India.
The vehicle will attempt to land on Friday morning (which is after midnight on Saturday in Japan).
Here's what you need to know about SLIM's moon landing:
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SLIM is currently in lunar orbit and will begin its descent on Friday around 10:40 a.m. Eastern Time.
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JAXA will take care of it a livestream of the landing with English translation starting at 9 a.m., The Times above will provide a built-in video player once the video feed starts.
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The experimental SLIM spacecraft, nicknamed 'moon sniper', is about the size of a small food truck. The mission's primary goal is to demonstrate a navigation system that could help future spacecraft land on the moon or other worlds with greater precision. It could allow vehicles to land at landing destinations that are less flat and more rugged, allowing for better science.
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SLIM has made a long, circuitous journey to the moon. It was launched on September 6, 2023 and traveled to space on an H-IIA rocket from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center. It did not begin orbiting the moon until December 25. The duration of the flight allowed the spacecraft to conserve propellant and test its systems before attempting to land.
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The spacecraft is small and light, but does not travel alone. After landing, two small rovers, LEV-1 and LEV-2, will be ejected and will briefly explore the lander.