At approximately 10:20am EST, Japan became the first country to successfully land a spacecraft on the lunar surface in over 50 years.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) braced for 20 minutes of terror as its Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) spacecraft attempted its lunar landing. At approximately 10:20am EST, Japan became the first country to successfully land a spacecraft on the lunar surface in over 50 years.
JAXA’s SLIM launched alongside the space agency’s XRISM (X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission) in September of last year. SLIM, also nicknamed «Moon Sniper» for its precision landing technology, marked the first attempt at a lunar landing since NASA’s ill-fated Peregrine Mission One headed up by Astrobotic, which ultimately ended with the Peregrine spacecraft burning up in Earth’s atmosphere over the Indian Ocean. JAXA confirmed its successful soft landing on the lunar surface and was able to establish communication with the spacecraft. SLIM encountered an electrical issue with the solar panel, but the space agency believes the lander itself is still operational.
“The start of the deceleration to the landing on the Moon’s surface is expected to be a breathless, numbing 20 minutes of terror!” remarked Kushiki Kenji, Sub-Project Manager of the SLIM Mission, ahead of the lunar landing attempt.
The Japanese space agency reported it will take more time to analyze the data collected during the landing, as well as data being collected since landing.
