Japan has been successful in launching and landing on the moon without failing. The first image of the landing side reveals the lander has been placed 55 metres from the pre-planned target.
Japan’s mini rover showed the yellow lander in good condition, sitting on the moon’s surface. The image shows the lander is lightly angled on the rocky grey surface. Slopes rising in the distance clearly show the uneven surface of the moon.
Japan has shown the world they have the technology, skill and enthusiasm for space research like other developed countries. SLIM successfully landed on the moon, showcasing Japan’s technological capability.
With the successful landing of the SLIM, Japan became the first country to land on the moon after India. The nation achieved the milestone in its first attempts, which is a commendable job. Before Japan, the United States, the Soviet Union, China and India successfully landed on the moon.
Lander has a limited supply of electricity; thus, the operational capability of the SLIM is limited. It powers the spacecraft with lightweight solar batteries.
After keeping the lander running for about three hours of the touchdown, JAXA switched off the SLIM lander because it had only 12 per cent power left. The lander cannot get the necessary powers when the sun angle shifts.
The battery would not have enough power to keep the lander operational. Also, due to the tilted angle of the solar panel, the charging capacity of the onboard solar panel would be weak. Sola cells are facing west and would have a limited supply of solar rays.
After the activation of the onboard system, the lander is going to seek clues about the origin of the moon. It is going to analyze the minerals with a particular camera. SLIM
is equipped with various high-end instruments to inspect the moon’s condition. The soft pad cushion would have impact absorption capability.
It aims to land near the Volcanic rock to take the samples. The primary objective of the JAXA is to check the possibility of the water resources. Water is the critical building block of organic life. Early research has shown that the Moon has plenty of water under the top layer of the soil. It might be available at freezing temperatures.
Scientists believe the moon will become the stopover between Earth and Mars. Moon will help reduce the distance between the Earth and Mars and make space travel between the two planets.
Besides that, the Moon soil could have organic minerals, precious gems and metal trapped underneath. The mining industry could benefit a lot from the moon soil. Thus, several countries like China and the USA are planning to use the Moon’s resources to build living space on the Moon’s surface. Building the habitat on the moon is the next step to evolve humans beyond our land. Space is the future, and we strive towards it every day.
The JAXA moon mission has created a sensation in the global media. Several countries plan their moon mission to list their country in the race. The SLIM mission was launched from the Mitsubishi Heavy H2A rocket in September 2023. It was orbiting the earth for a few days and finally reached the lunar orbit on 25 December 2023.
During this time, the Lunar lander performed several manoeuvres to keep it in orbit. The Government and private firms funded the SLIM mission. Earlier missions funded by public and private failed drastically. Therefore, the success of Japan’s moon mission was important to the country.
Japanese startup companies have tried the mission where they plan to land on the moon, but the company lost the communication of the craft after the hard landing.
SLIM is now communicating with the ground base telescope and exchanging information with the JAXA, the Japanese space agency headquarters. The lost connection to the Smart Lander is still possible. Thus, the team at the JAXA is tirelessly trying to reconnect with the lander. The purpose of the lander was to investigate the surrounding area. It is built with a specific purpose. But since the landers have lost the communication, the team must first regain control.
