Japan is aiming to secure its position as the fifth country to achieve a spacecraft landing on the moon, marking a significant milestone for its space program, which has faced challenges and competition, particularly from China. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is launching the "moon sniper" probe, designed to make a precision landing within 100 meters (328 feet) of its target. This technology is crucial for lunar exploration, specifically in the search for moon water and assessing human habitability.
As Japan seeks a more prominent role in space, it has formed partnerships, including with close ally Washington, to address challenges posed by China's advancements in military and technology, particularly in space. Japan, with its array of private-sector space startups, is also working towards sending an astronaut to the moon as part of NASA's Artemis program.
However, JAXA has encountered setbacks, such as the launch failure of its new flagship rocket H3 in March, intended to compete with commercial providers like SpaceX in terms of cost-effectiveness.
The Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) probe, colloquially known as the "moon sniper," initiated its 20-minute touchdown phase on a one-way mission from midnight on Saturday (1500 GMT Friday). The target site is approximately the size of two athletic tracks on the slope of a crater just south of the lunar equator.
Shinichiro Sakai, JAXA's SLIM project manager, highlighted the uniqueness of Japan's high-precision technology, emphasizing its potential advantage in future international missions like Artemis. India's successful Chandrayaan-3 mission in August also underscored the growing significance of countries like India in space exploration.
JAXA's technology is particularly focused on hilly moon poles, seen as potential sources of oxygen, fuel, and water. Japan plans a joint unmanned lunar polar exploration with India in 2025. Kazuto Saiki, a professor at Ritsumeikan University involved in SLIM's development, emphasized the importance of Japan's focus on building sought-after technologies, such as pinpoint landing and advanced cameras for moon exploration.
While Japan has previously landed on small asteroids, lunar landings pose greater challenges due to the moon's gravity, as evidenced by recent failures in space exploration attempts. JAXA's SLIM mission aims to demonstrate high-precision landing capabilities, potentially reducing the overall cost of lunar missions worldwide.
The success of SLIM's precision landing is expected to be confirmed within a month of touchdown. Additionally, upon landing, SLIM will deploy two mini-probes—a hopping vehicle and a wheeled rover—to capture images of the spacecraft. These robots were jointly developed by tech giant Sony Group, toymaker Tomy, and several Japanese universities.
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