Tokyo - Following India's groundbreaking achievement with the Chandrayaan-3 lunar landing, Japan's space program is poised to make a comeback after a series of setbacks. Their upcoming mission, dubbed "Moon Sniper," is set to launch next week.
The planned rocket launch will carry a lander, which is anticipated to touch down on the lunar surface in approximately four to six months. Additionally, an x-ray imaging satellite designed to explore the universe's evolution will be part of the payload.
Originally scheduled for Monday, the launch has been rescheduled to the following day due to adverse weather conditions, as announced by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) on Friday.
While Japan boasts one of the world's prominent space programs, it experienced setbacks recently. Their initial attempt to place a lander on the Moon in November 2022 ended in failure, and a new rocket variant suffered an explosion during a test last month.
JAXA's focus now centers on the "Smart Lander for Investigating Moon," known by the acronym SLIM. This compact and lightweight lander, measuring 2.4 meters in height, 2.7 meters in width, and 1.7 meters in length, weighs around 700 kilograms.
Referred to as the "Moon Sniper" due to its precision, the SLIM mission aims to land within a mere 100 meters of a designated target on the lunar surface, an impressive feat compared to the typical range of several kilometers.
The mission includes a small, shape-shifting mini rover, developed in collaboration with a toy company. This rover is intended to examine exposed portions of the lunar mantle, providing insights into the Moon's formation.
Shinichiro Sakai from the SLIM project team acknowledged India's success in lunar landing technology and expressed a commitment to emulate their achievements, stating, "To follow suit, we will do our best in our own operations."
Just days before Japan's upcoming launch, India celebrated a historic triumph with its craft landing near the Moon's south pole. This feat marked a significant milestone for India's space program and followed earlier attempts by Russia and India that faced challenges in the same region.
Japan's space endeavors have encountered their share of obstacles, including failed lunar landings and rocket launch issues. Nevertheless, their dedication remains strong, as seen in the forthcoming Moon Sniper mission and the concurrent launch of the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM), a collaborative effort involving JAXA, NASA, and the European Space Agency. The XRISM satellite's high-resolution X-ray spectroscopic observations hold promise for advancing our understanding of celestial phenomena and dark matter.